How can you apply negotiation skills to advocacy work?

2 Understand their interests and alternatives

Negotiation is not a one-sided affair. You also need to consider the interests and alternatives of the other party or parties involved. This will help you understand their perspective, find common ground, and anticipate their reactions. You can research their background, history, values, and priorities, as well as their sources of power, influence, and leverage. You can also ask open-ended questions, listen actively, and empathize with their concerns. For example, if you are negotiating with a funder, you may want to know their mission, vision, criteria, and budget, as well as their expectations, challenges, and feedback. Understanding their interests and alternatives will help you build rapport, trust, and credibility, and create value for both sides.

3 Prepare your strategy and tactics

Once you have a clear picture of your own and their interests and alternatives, you can prepare your negotiation strategy and tactics. Your strategy is the overall approach you will use to achieve your goals, while your tactics are the specific actions you will take during the negotiation. You can choose from different negotiation styles, such as collaborative, competitive, accommodating, avoiding, or compromising, depending on the situation, the relationship, and the desired outcome. You can also use various negotiation tactics, such as framing, anchoring, concession-making, trading, coalition-building, or deadline-setting, to influence the process and the outcome. For example, if you are negotiating with a media outlet, you may use a collaborative style and frame your story as a win-win opportunity for both sides. You may also anchor your request with a high but reasonable offer, make concessions on minor issues, trade information for exposure, build a coalition with other advocates, or set a deadline to create urgency. Preparing your strategy and tactics will help you plan ahead, stay focused, and adapt to changing circumstances.

4 Manage your emotions and relationships

Negotiation can be an emotionally charged and stressful experience, especially when you are dealing with sensitive or contentious issues. As a community organizer, you may feel passionate, angry, frustrated, or anxious during the negotiation, and these emotions can affect your judgment, behavior, and outcome. Therefore, you need to manage your emotions and relationships effectively. You can do this by being aware of your triggers, calming yourself down, expressing your feelings constructively, and acknowledging the emotions of others. You can also use positive emotions, such as humor, appreciation, or excitement, to enhance the negotiation atmosphere and outcome. For example, if you are negotiating with a government official, you may feel intimidated, resentful, or defensive, and these emotions may make you lose confidence, lash out, or give up. You can manage your emotions by breathing deeply, reframing the situation, stating your needs respectfully, and validating their feelings. You can also use humor to lighten the mood, appreciation to show gratitude, or excitement to convey enthusiasm. Managing your emotions and relationships will help you maintain your dignity, respect, and integrity, and foster cooperation and collaboration.