If you prepare before a negotiation, you will be more confident. Confidence greatly improves your chances of negotiating a good Win-win deal. But sometimes the stance you take in looking at the negotiation is important too. Is the glass half full or half empty? Are you getting most of the provisions you wanted, or are you losing a few? Don’t disregard how important having a positive outlook on things can be when trying to find that perfect balance for a WIN-win negotiation.
The following is an excerpt from the book “The Power of NICE” which tells a story about a very confident young boy who sees the scoreboard through rose-colored glasses.
“Never underestimate how far confidence and a positive attitude will take you. Some people are born with this outlook. My 6-year-old nephew is one of these people. I went to see him pitch in a Little League game. First, he walked the first five batters. He then struck out two kids who could barely hold their bats up. The next kid bunted the ball but ended up with a home run because of all the fielding errors. After several more walks and hits and errors and lots of runs, my nephew struck out one more kid. The inning, mercifully, was over. He had given up 12 runs. As he walked over to me, I expected tears. I said, “Nick, are you okay?” He broke into a broad smile and said, “Yeah! Did you see that? I struck out the side!!!” That’s looking at the positive side.”
