An alternative to the “Yes, but.. ” answer

Posted: January 12th, 2009 | Tags: Dealmaking, Negotiation, Project Manager skills | No Comments »

Over on PPMNG Andy Kaufman has started a discussion on How to say “No” (Without saying “No”).   This is in line with my current discussion here.

Andy’s suggestion is to rather use the “Yes, but” answer than a solid “No”.  In principle I agree with his answer.  Always leave the door open for negotiations.  However, I do differ with the way the answer is phrased.

An expert negotiator has told me never to use “Yes, but” because an experienced negotiator will cut your sentence short at the “but”. Better way to phrase this is ” If ….<your conditions> then I will be able to do ..<their requirement>…” This allows you to get your position on the table before saying yes to anything. If they cannot accept your condition then you will be interrupted before accepting anything.

Funny how these small changes make a big difference in the outcome.

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