Many negotiators still use the Sun Tzu formula. Art of War as an authoritative reference. Now while Art of War can be a good battle textbook; it is a lousy guide to modern negotiations. Let’s be honest; Any approach that relies on calling the other party ‘the enemy’ will have trouble creating mutually beneficial deals!

However, the strategy and tactics of war games can hold many lessons for negotiators. A very instructive war game is chess.

Position and Intent

Just like negotiation, every move in a game of chess involves taking a position. All your opponent sees is that you move your piece from one square to another. A novice chess player will simply react to this with a counter move. However, an experienced player will try to determine the intention behind the move. What is his strategy? What is your long-term goal? While a beginner plans his next move, an experienced player thinks at least three moves ahead. Likewise, an expert negotiator will always look for the intention behind the position adopted; and unlike a game of chess, you can ask questions.

three questions

When I played competitive chess, I developed my own three-question process that used to examine every move my opponent made. These same three questions work wonderfully to help you understand the other party’s strategy in a negotiation.

Question 1: What does it attack?

Which of my positions (offers) are you attacking? Why are you choosing to focus on that? Do I need to defend my position, or is she strong enough to stand on her own so that I can ignore her criticism? You may need to reinforce the benefits of your offer if you feel they are not fully appreciated. Or, you may recognize this as a tactic to unsettle him and it can be safely rejected. Some negotiators believe that they can make her change her position by attacking her. The reality is that challenging the other party’s idea head-on is more likely to result in them defending it, which will further deepen their entrenched position.

Question 2: What do you defend?

Are they trying to reinforce a previously made offer? This can give an idea of ​​your priorities. To negotiate more effectively, you need to understand what priorities your demands have for them. These will be divided into three categories:

1. ‘Must haves’: essentials without which the negotiation would not make sense

2. ‘Nice-to-haves’: demands in which they are willing to give in

3. Scope Claims: Claims that serve as bargaining chips: concessions that are at no cost to them and for which you could trade something of value.

You should evaluate each component of your offer to determine which category it falls into.

They may be defending themselves because you have fallen into the trap of attacking them; either as a tactic or because you have been annoyed. This rarely works. Remember, you don’t have to prove them wrong, you just have to prove them right.

Question 3: What does it open?

You can move a chess piece simply to bring another piece into play. Similarly, an offer in a negotiation can open up possibilities in areas you hadn’t considered before. Always be willing to explore areas that you may not have thought of in your preparation because it may just be a small piece of added value that gets your deal over the line.

The one area where you should get rid of the chess analogy is in the outcome. Chess players expect to walk away with a crushing defeat with their opponent conceding and coming off as a loser. In the negotiation, you should always look for the honorable tie that makes you conclude with satisfaction and mutual respect.