My best buddy, Eric Chen, has compiled a list of negotiation quotes. Thought it might be interesting to some of you readers. You might even find some of the quotes amusing!
Here it is:
Dean Acheson
Negotiation in the classic diplomatic sense assumes parties more anxious to agree than to disagree
Karl Albrecht
Start out with an ideal and end up with a deal.
Howard Baker
The most difficult thing in any negotiation, almost, is making sure that you strip it of the emotion and deal with the facts. And there was a considerable challenge to that here and understandably so.
Honore de Balzac
Imaginative, sanguine men will never recognize that in negotiations the most dangerous moment of all is when everything is moving according to their wishes.
Otto Van Bismarck
When a man says that he approves something in principal, it means he hasn’t the slightest intention of putting it in practice.
Ashleigh Brilliant
If you can’t go around it, over it, or through it, you had better negotiate with it.
Charles Dickens
Here’s the rule for bargains: ”Do other men, for they would do you.” That’s the true business precept.
Benjamin Disraeli
I never refuse. I contradict. I sometimes forget.
Robert Estabrook
He who has learned to disagree without being disagreeable has discovered the most valuable secret of a diplomat.
Francois FéNelon
Most people I ask little from. I try to give them much, and expect nothing in return and I do very well in the bargain.
B. C. Forbes
Any business arrangement that is not profitable to the other person will in the end prove unprofitable for you. The bargain that yields mutual satisfaction is the only one that is apt to be repeated.
Benjamin Franklin
Necessity never made a good bargain.
Marvin Gave
Negotiating means getting the best of your opponent.
J. Paul Getty
My father said: “You must never try to make all the money that’s in a deal. Let the other fellow make some money too, because if you have a reputation for always making all the money, you won’t have many deals.
John L. Graham
The correct strategy for Americans negotiating with Japanese or other foreign clients is a Japanese strategy: ask questions. When you think you understand, ask more questions. Carefully feel for pressure points. If an impasse is reached, don’t pressure. Suggest a recess or another meeting.
Harri Holkeri
If you come to a negotiation table saying you have the final truth, that you know nothing but the truth and that is final, you will get nothing.
Chester L. Karrass
In business, you don’t get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
The freedom of the city is not negotiable. We cannot negotiate with those who say, “What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is negotiable.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.
Rudyard Kipling
If you don’t get what you want, it’s a sign either that you did not seriously want it, or that you tried to bargain over the price.
Brian Koslow
During a negotiation, it would be wise not to take anything personally. If you leave personalities out of it, you will be able to see opportunities more objectively.
Marvin S. Levin
If you are planning on doing business with someone again, don’t be too tough in the negotiations. If you’re going to skin a cat, don’t keep it as a house cat.
Max Markson
The first thing you have to do, whether you are the buyer or the seller, is find out what the other party’s budget is. If you are buying, your offer should be ridiculously low so you have room to go up. If you are selling, start ridiculously high so you can come down.
Max Markson
Some deals can take months and months of negotiations, some I have sealed in one phone call, but the bottom line it so never give up. Walk away to give yourself some breathing space, sure, but never let negotiations break down completely.
Max Markson
Quite often, your indifference can be the greatest negotiating weapon you have.
Georger Mikes
Bargaining is a repulsive habit; compromise is one of the highest human virtues - the difference between the two being that the first is practised on the Continent, the latter in Great Britain
Lance Morrow
Never forget the power of silence, that massively disconcerting pause which goes on and on and may at last induce an opponent to babble and backtrack nervously.
Stan Musial
The first principle of contract negotiation is don’t remind them of what you did in the past; tell them what you’re going to do in the future.
George Ross
To be successful, you have to be able to relate to people; they have to be satisfied with your personality to be able to do business with you and to build a relationship with mutual trust.
George Schultz
Negotiations are a euphemism for capitulation if the shadow of power is not cast across the bargaining table.
Adam Smith
Man is an animal that makes bargains: no other animal does this - no dog exchanges bones with another.
Anonymous
Any business arrangement that is not profitable to the other person will in the end prove unprofitable for you. The bargain that yields mutual satisfaction is the only one that is apt to be repeated.
Anonymous
The single most powerful tool for winning a negotiation is the ability to get up and walk away from the table without a deal.
Anonymous
The two keys to negotiating are superior information and learning to smile and say, “No, no, no, no, no” until your tongue bleeds.
Anonymous
You must be fully prepared to lose a great deal in order to make a great deal.
Greek Proverb
Make every bargain clear and plain, that none may afterwards complain.
Greek Proverb
A miser and a liar bargain quickly.
Dr Phil
Effective negotiators have a style that those whom they are trying to influence, relate to and admire.
Dr Phil
The negotiating world often contains some razzle-dazzle and hocus-pocus, so lighten up and enjoy the game.
Lord Chandos
Flattery is the infantry of negotiation.
Here’s my own quote:
Jens Thang
The single biggest danger in negotiation is not failure but to be successful without knowing why you are successful.
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Jens Thang
Negotiation Skills for Everyone
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Related Links
1. 8 Best Ways to Get Power: Master Them to Negotiate Everything You Want
2. 4 Simple Habits to Power Up Your Negotiation
3. How to Win in Negotiation: 4 Key Steps to Help You Prepare
4. How to be a classy negotiator?
5. What do people lack most when they negotiate?
Tags: adr, business, conflict resolution, influence, mediation, negotiation, psychology, strategy, tips
Entries (RSS)
February 24th, 2008 at 2:21 am
Great quotes! I’ll add another:
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
“You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you might find you get what you need.”
February 24th, 2008 at 5:58 am
Jens, this is a great list of quotes. Fascinating to see the different orientations to negotiation — some are plainly from a value-claiming perspective, others from a value-creating one. (Consider for example the contrasting quotes from Marvin Gave v. B.C. Forbes.)
Good stuff!