3-series. If you already have another dealer who’s given
you a written offer for $10,000, that’s your BATNA.
The problem is that BATNA tricks negotiators into
aiming low. Researchers have found that humans have a
limited capacity for keeping focus in complex, stressful
situations like negotiations. And so, once a negotiation is
under way, we tend to gravitate toward the focus point that
has the most psychological significance for us.
In that context, obsessing over a BATNA turns it into
your target, and thereby sets the upper limit of what you will
ask for. After you’ve spent hours on a BATNA, you
mentally concede everything beyond it.
God knows aiming low is seductive. Self-esteem is a
huge factor in negotiation, and many people set modest
goals to protect it. It’s easier to claim victory when you aim
low. That’s why some negotiation experts say that many
people who think they have “win-win” goals really have a
“wimp-win” mentality. The “wimp-win” negotiator focuses
on his or her bottom line, and that’s where they end up.
So if BATNA isn’t your centerpiece, what should be?
I tell my clients that as part of their preparation they
should think about the outcome extremes: best and worst. If
you’ve got both ends covered, you’ll be ready for anything.
So know what you cannot accept and have an idea about the
best-case outcome, but keep in mind that since there’s
information yet to be acquired from the other side, it’s quite
possible that best case might be even better than you know.
Remember, never be so sure of what you want that you