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The word "neogtiate" as defined in Thesaurus itself gives an idea as to the steps required in this process. It starts with Talk/Discuss, followed by bargain, agree, settle, cooperate, collaborate and finally "reach a deal". We are always in a situation of negotiation when we want to get something from someone and we know it is not going to be easy. Depending on the context, I advocate the following strategies :- 1) study your own current position - is it of strength or weakness ? 2) be prepared to "give" to the other party/parties in return for "taking" what you want, 3) do not be cowed down or undermined by the other party's threats ( 99% of the time they are bluffing and it is only a situation of " who blinked first"!) 4) prepare all the points for discussion and present rationally, preferably with data wherever possible 5) Never argue but be firm and polite no matter how low the other party stoops - mature handling always gives you a moral advantage ! 6) Reveal your points stage-by-stage, not all at one time, 7) depending on the context, be mentally prepared for long durations of silence/ inaction/ no response 8) finally and most importantly, after successfully closing the deal make it appear (even on record, if need be) that you were a poor bargainer while the other party is a winner (while actually you will be smiling on the inside!) !
Good luck!
