How can you use emotional intelligence to build trust in a negotiation?

1 Know your emotions

Before you enter a negotiation, you need to be aware of your own emotions and how they affect your behavior and decisions. For example, if you are feeling anxious, angry, or defensive, you might be more likely to make impulsive or aggressive moves, or to misinterpret the other party's signals. To avoid this, you need to practice self-regulation, which means controlling your impulses, calming yourself down, and expressing your emotions appropriately. You can use techniques such as breathing exercises, positive affirmations, or visualizations to reduce your stress and boost your confidence.

2 Understand their emotions

To build trust in a negotiation, you also need to understand the emotions of the other party and how they influence their interests, needs, and goals. For example, if they are feeling frustrated, fearful, or resentful, they might be more likely to resist your proposals, or to hide or distort information. To avoid this, you need to practice empathy, which means putting yourself in their shoes, listening actively, and acknowledging their feelings. You can use techniques such as asking open-ended questions, paraphrasing, or mirroring to show that you care and respect their perspective.

4 Adapt to situations

Finally, to use EI to build trust in a negotiation, you need to adapt to changing situations and respond appropriately. This means being flexible and creative, and not being attached to a fixed position or outcome. For example, if you encounter a deadlock, a surprise, or a conflict, you should not react with panic, anger, or stubbornness. Instead, you should react with curiosity, optimism, and collaboration. You can use techniques such as brainstorming, reframing, or compromising to find new solutions and opportunities.

Using EI to build trust in a negotiation can help you create more value, satisfaction, and harmony for both parties. It can also help you develop long-term relationships and reputation that can benefit your future negotiations. To improve your EI skills, you need to practice self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, communication, and adaptation regularly and deliberately.