To get a dream car at the lowest price possible negotiation at the car mart is a must. Negotiation refers to a dialogue between two people (the buyer and the seller) to get to an agreed price of an item. People tend to take negotiation for granted but it is a daunting task since many things are in play. For instance, communication and the personality of the participant may enhance the negotiation process or may detract one of the parties from the process and ultimately a deal may not be sealed. Therefore this essay will look at the role the two play in negotiation as well as give a detailed example of negotiation.
The last time I was in a car mart I started by introducing myself to the attendant. Then after a short tour in the showroom, I started the car I wanted while pointing at it, and requested its price tag. I was shocked because the price was higher than I had anticipated. I quoted my price and the salesman just smiled. He told me that, the car was worth more than that; this was the case because it had been built using the latest technology. Additionally, he opened the door and showed me some of the inbuilt features and I liked its music system. We cross-examined everything that I said and what he said and at the end, we settled at a price that was lower than he had initially quoted.’
From this case, one can realize that negotiation is all about fostering effective communication skills. Communication takes place when the intended information is received by the other party. (“Key Aspects”, 2009) posits that ‘we have to be aware of both verbal and nonverbal communication.’ Verbal communication creates and sustains a dialogue between the two parties. However, the vocabulary that is being used may hinder this process. For instance, the use of abusive and negative words may discourage the buyer. Therefore one should use friendly terms to keep the other party interested in negotiation.
Nonverbal communications on the other hand include kinesics, proxemics, facial and eye expression, chronemics, and physical appearance and dress. Linguist agrees that nonverbal communication takes 75% of communication that takes place. Therefore we have to be very keen on these things to negotiate effectively. However, nonverbal communication is culturally specific and this may prevent an individual from getting the real picture (“Key Aspects”, 2009).
Personality deals with individual behaviors that drive our actions. Understanding different personality is vital because it helps us deal with different people perfectly. Henry (2008) commenting on the same theme asserts that ‘the knowledge of our personality places us in a better position whereby we can manage it and this is one way of improving our performance, hence enhancing negotiation.’ There are four basic personalities that everyone should take time to understand so that you can be flexible when interacting with business-oriented people. These personalities have different behavioral characteristics and they include pragmatics, extroverts, amiable and analytic. Once you understand different personalities you can deal with all kinds of people.
In conclusion, communication and personality influence the pace and process of negotiation. Once we are aware of the roles that these two items play, then we improve our performance and any negotiation thereafter becomes easier.
Reference
Key Aspects of Communication in Negotiation. Web.
Henry (2008): Personality and Negotiation. Web.