Negotiating and the Power of Three

Many people get hung up on trying to get a specific outcome from a negotiation.

You'll see a person who is smitten and gets focused on buying a particular house, or a business person who is after a specific outcome. People rob themselves of power by utilizing that approach.

Consider the power you keep if, instead of setting your heart on one house, you spread your search to three homes and put bids on all three, contingent on the right to refuse should they be excepted. Instead of a simple yes or no, this approach gives you the power of several alternatives. Single outcome negotiations lead to desperation, and that's never a good place to be in a negotiation.

THIS RULE OF THREE WORKS IN PROPOSALS TOO.

In business, many people extend their proposals without options. By definition, that turns into a "take it or leave it" scenario. Giving the other party three options in the proposal is a much better tactic. 

Given option A, B, or C, option B will be the choice 70-80% of the time. This approach gives people not only the power to choose, which is always good, but it provides them with arguments to justify their decision. 

 "I didn't choose the most expensive."

Not only that, the option a person selects gives you powerful information as to what's most important to them. Is your client driven more by timeline, money, or content?

So - when you're negotiating, think in threes. Three options or three tracks. When you're submitting proposals, think in threes.