As a professional speaker and an
entrepreneur, good negotiation
skills are critical. When talking to
clients and speaking to audiences,
it’s up to you to set the stage for a
future relationship and more business. After spending thousands
of hours with CEOs, it is clear that
chief decision makers think differently when on the threshold of
making decisions. Not only do they
have “WIIFM” (“What’s in it for me?”)
running through their heads continuously, but they also know how
to analyze a potential opportunity
quickly and determine if they should
move forward or back away.
Many speakers say they have something
great to offer but they just can’t negotiate well. Really? These are some of the
traits of good negotiators:
Confident, yet approachable
and warm
Knowledgeable, yet willing to learn
Prepared, yet flexible
Motivated, yet empathetic
Big-picture focused, yet mindful
of details
Do these qualities sound familiar? They
should. They describe a majority of
professional speakers. Here are ways
chief decision makers think and what
you can do to improve your negotiation
outcomes overall.
