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In past negotiation lessons, I’ve highlighted strategies and tactics that you can use when negotiating. I’ve discussed the value of being able to read and interpret body language (nonverbal signals). I’ve elaborated on the virtues of being mindfully astute when it comes to deciphering nuances that occur when negotiating. The one thing I haven’t touched on in any great length, in any lessons, is the value ‘hope’ plays when negotiating.

I don’t wish to sound whimsical nor capricious, but there’s something to be said about faith, belief, and ‘hope’, when you negotiate. Of course, you still have to prepare for any negotiation by doing your due diligence when it comes to gathering background information on the other negotiator, creating a plan for the negotiation (your road map), and determining what you’ll do if the negotiation doesn’t go the way you want. Nevertheless, you can add an additional dimension to the negotiation by having faith in your abilities and giving consideration to the role ‘hope’ will play.

Let me state, I’m not a huge fan of the law of attraction, but there are ‘things’ that occur in the universe that none of us are truly aware. That being the case, might ‘hope’ really be a viable resource that you can use to enhance a negotiation? There will be setbacks and heartbreaks when you negotiate. Things won’t always go the way you planned, but if you can keep yourself from feeling beaten, downtrodden, and discouraged, you’ll keep ‘hope’ alive.

Have you ever thought that something you wanted very badly would never come to pass? Then, when it didn’t, your first thought was, I knew it wouldn’t happen. Think for a moment. In the instant you thought about a negative experience, it occurred. Maybe part of its occurrence came to fruition,partly due to the thought process you manifested. I’m not suggesting you can will something into existence nor will it away, but if you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right! The direction in which you think, will be the direction in which you’ll move.

When you negotiate, instead of being pessimistic, try to be optimistic. Allow ‘hope’ to replace doubt. Allow ‘hope’ to replace fear. Let not your imagination be your downfall, due to your lack of belief, faith, or conviction that you have about your negotiation position and the outcome you seek.

The next time you’re in a tough negotiation situation and you’re not sure if you’ll be able to acquire the outcome for which you search, close your eyes, while at the negotiation table, and quietly start thinking or chanting out loud, ‘I have ‘hope!’ By doing so, you will enhance the chance that the negotiation will turn out to be more positive for all involved. This may not work, but if your chant is heard by the other negotiator, believe me, it will get his attention. Upon seeing and hearing you, he may give consideration to helping you achieve what you need and want from the negotiation.

Even if using ‘hope’ in your negotiation doesn’t bear fruit, it won’t leave you bare. You will have discovered another tool that will cause pause in a negotiation. During that pause, the negotiation can be reshaped, revamped, and redirected. Done right, with the proper timing, you’ll throw the other negotiator off his game. At that time you’ll have a momentary advantage. Use ‘hope’ wisely and you just might shift the power of the negotiation to your advantage; after all, who knows? With ‘hope’ the unimaginable may become reality … and everything will be right with the world.

The Negotiation Lessons are …

· When you’re handed a plate that’s broken into a million pieces and all you have is a single rubber band to put it back together, what else can you do except ‘hope’. When negotiating, don’t discount the value of ‘hope’.

· While negotiating, pay close attention to the dynamics that are occurring. If the other negotiator is faith based, or one that can be easily mollified, you can use flowery language such as, ‘I ‘hope’ we can achieve the outcome we’re seeking.’ This type of negotiator will be more impressed by such language and easier to assuage.

· It’s been said that “Chance favors the prepared mind.” When your negotiation plans fail to bring forth the outcome you seek, or it’s not going in the direction in which you’d like, use ‘hope’ and always try to keep ‘hope’ alive.

Millions of inventors and entrepreneurs set out every year with good ideas and great products, but what separates the many from the few is executing the fundamentals. One of these basic tenants that many businesses struggle with is setting the right price on your product and achieving the delicate balance between making a profit and keeping merchandise competitive.

There are many factors that go into pricing your product. Many companies will over-estimate or under-estimate how much a retailer is willing to pay for a quality product, as well as what the end-consumer will pay.

Here are a few key tips to competitively pricing your product to retailers:

1. Know your target consumer – Who are you selling to and why would they want your product? Take your time to do thorough market research before deciding the value of your product. Many companies will hire outside companies to help in this crucial step.

2. Know all your costs – This includes expenses like your sales and marketing team, cost of labor and materials, salary expenses, as well as your company’s future growth plans, your expected profit margin, and a realistic revenue goal.

3. Know your competition -Making a head-to-head comparison between your competition’s prices and costs can be very helpful when determining how to price your product. You can bet that any retailer you are selling to will check out your competition to gauge your prices.

4. Know your market – Are there new laws being considered that may affect your business? Or maybe the price of your materials has been on the rise? Consider the future stability of your market when making price decisions.

Everyone wants to sell to big-box retailers like Wal-Mart and Best Buy, but don’t forget that bigger retailers might mean a higher sales volume, but don’t expect to make a high profit off of them. Smaller retailers, on the other hand, will accept higher prices, but offer small sales revenue. Knowing who you are selling to is key to setting the right price for your products.

Lastly, after you set the right price, don’t forget to continuously monitor your prices after you get into stores. Keep an eye on the market, your competitors and the profit of your products. Be ready to shift the price of your product when it is necessary.

Striking the right balance between earning a profit and remaining competitive can be difficult, but with the right tools and know-how the task can become a little less daunting and help set your business up for success.

The Tibetans have a saying;

You will have to stand for a very long time

with your mouth wide open

before a roasted partridge will fly into it…

It is a rather droll way of expressing high levels of improbability, but nevertheless useful, in reminding us that some things that we may pine and hope for are simply ‘unrealistic.’

The fact is that we could stand outside ‘forever,’ with our mouths agape and there is no way in the world that a ‘roasted partridge’ will ever fly in!

The odds are completely against this ever happening and it is like this also with a lot of things that we may cling very vehemently to as aspirations, hopes, dreams and wishes.

This is not to say that we should not have any. It is only to point out that it is wiser to actually get out and take the needed steps that would enable an ‘outcome’ to eventuate.

We must measure our wishes against our ability to create the causes that will engender the hoped for ‘conditions.’

When we wait too long, the chances are we may miss out altogether.

If you are into ‘roasted partridges’ it makes more sense to scour the markets.

There is a huge advantage in learning to ‘surrender’ to life and accept what actually ‘is.’ Instead of dancing through our days like animated ‘puppets,’ tossed about here and there, in a relentless cycle of ‘hope and fear,’ we can simply learn to relax and allow our attention to fully greet exactly whatever arises before us.

Most of the time, we do exactly the opposite. Our ‘attention’ is fixed elsewhere; any where, but right ‘here’ and right ‘now.’

We need not live our lives as slaves to longings, hopes, desires or fear. We ALWAYS have a choice.

We can do ourselves the greatest possible favor and recognize the treasure of the ‘present moment.’

The ‘present moment’ deserves our closest attention, gratitude and even devotion.

Take the hint and look again more carefully at the very thing that you routinely take for granted. Things are seldom ever quite as they ‘appear’ to be.

This present moment, when it is just lived out for what it is, provides us with the supreme opportunity to discover an incredibly important truth.

If it were not for the present moment we could not exist at all.

Truly this present moment is precious indeed!