Real negotiation skill is not toughness or charisma. It is ten specific habits, most of which boil down to discipline under pressure and asking one more question before you respond.
Analysis
Why most negotiations fail before anyone sits down — and what to do about it
Top Stories
Case Studies
Real-World Win-Win: Case Studies from Business Negotiations
Abstract frameworks are useful. Watching them applied in actual deals is more useful. Three cases where win-win thinking unlocked better outcomes.
9 min read
Mindset
Emotional Intelligence in Negotiation: Reading the Room and Yourself
Emotional intelligence in negotiation is not warmth or likeability. It is a disciplined practice of reading affective state in yourself and others, and acting on that perception instead of your initial reaction.
6 min read
Tactics
Negotiation Skills for Remote and Virtual Conversations
Video calls flatten the negotiation landscape. The cues you relied on in person are missing. Here's how to adapt.
7 min read
Every negotiation has a structure.
Learn to read it — and use it.
Fundamentals
10 Essential Negotiation Skills Every Professional Needs
Real negotiation skill is not toughness or charisma. It is ten specific habits, most of which boil down to discipline under pressure and asking one more question before you respond.
5 min read
Fundamentals
Common Win-Win Negotiation Myths Debunked
Most of what people "know" about collaborative negotiation is wrong. Here are the five most persistent myths.
7 min read
Fundamentals
How to Prepare for a Negotiation: A Step-by-Step Checklist
The single largest predictor of negotiation outcomes is not skill or aggression, it is preparation. The catch is that most preparation people do is rehearsal, not the structured analytical work that actually moves outcomes.
6 min read
Case Studies
Real-World Win-Win: Case Studies from Business Negotiations
Abstract frameworks are useful. Watching them applied in actual deals is more useful. Three cases where win-win thinking unlocked better outcomes.
9 min read
Case Studies
Case Study: The Microsoft-Nokia Deal and the Dangers of One-Sided Negotiation
Microsoft acquired Nokia's phone business for $7.2 billion in 2013 and wrote down $7.6 billion just two years later. The deal shows how winning negotiation terms too decisively can destroy the value you were trying to capture.
6 min read
Case Studies
Case Study: How the Camp David Accords Used Principled Negotiation to Broker Peace
The 1978 Camp David Accords are the textbook example of principled negotiation, but the real lesson is procedural: Jimmy Carter restructured the talks so neither leader had to publicly concede before they had privately agreed.
6 min read
Mindset
Emotional Intelligence in Negotiation: Reading the Room and Yourself
Emotional intelligence in negotiation is not warmth or likeability. It is a disciplined practice of reading affective state in yourself and others, and acting on that perception instead of your initial reaction.
6 min read
Mindset
The Scarcity Mindset vs. Abundance Mindset in Negotiation
Abundance mindset is not optimism. It is the operational consequence of having built real alternatives before the negotiation began. Here is how scarcity quietly costs you, and what to invest in upstream so it does not.
5 min read
Mindset
From Competitive to Collaborative: How to Shift Negotiation Mindsets
The move from positional bargaining to principled negotiation is more psychological than tactical. Here's what that shift actually looks like.
8 min read