Professor Margaret Neale of Stanford GSB - Negotiation Strategy: Six Common Pitfalls to Avoid

stanfordknowledgebase August  8th, 2011

Whether you’re negotiating for your firm or for your position in it, you’ll do better if you avoid some common pitfalls.

Successful bargaining means looking for positives in every possible circumstance. “If I can trade off issues that I care about more and you care about less, then we’ve been able to create value in a transaction,” says Margaret Neale, professor of organizational behavior and director of two Stanford Business School executive education programs in negotiation. “That’s the silver lining.”

Sometimes negotiators fall into traps and leave resources on the table because they can’t see that silver lining. Some common pitfalls are:...