Being deceived and lied to in
negotiating is more common than we may think. I’m certain that there are
thousands of negotiations that take place on a daily basis that involve
complete strangers who have one thing in common: to get the best deal possible.
There are several ways in which to help from becoming a victim of deception
while negotiating. They include setting goals carefully, assessing underlying
uncertainty, paying attention to norms, and preparing carefully.
Research shows that difficult yet
realistic goals trigger aggressive and sometimes unethical behavior while
negotiating. It’s better to enter the process with goals that are reasonable
and attainable without being too demanding as this could facilitate a more
ethical negotiation process. Uncertainty leads to communicating information in
a self-serving way. When negotiating, use facts and real information, ask direct
questions, and ask specifics. This eliminates ambiguity and forces the
negotiation process to be less deceptive.
Norms and self-perceptions lead
to a dishonest and unfair negotiation process. Create an atmosphere that
eliminates any cultural uncertainties and one that will spur ethical behavior.
Lastly, prepare carefully by asking open-ended and specific questions,
preparing responses to questions, asking unexpected questions, and following-up
with questions that can help weed-out the lies.
A few months back when my wife
and I were purchasing a used car, the salesman had explained that the batter
had been replaced the previous year. It was February when we were car shopping,
but I never thought anything of it. He had used the same response when being
asked about other items on the car, and I questioned him by wanting to see the
maintenance records. The services were completed last year, but it was in March
the previous year, so nearly a year before this. He was right in stating it was
done last year, but failed to elaborate that the car had either been sitting in
their lot that long or that the service was done almost a year ago.
My son wanted me to take him to
the to store last week, so I made an agreement with him and told him that as
long as he helped clean the garage with me I would take him. He happily
accepted because normally the garage is an easy clean-up job. This time, the
garage was tore apart from various projects, but I did not disclose this to
him. He was disappointed when he found out about the state the garage was in
and that he already agreed to help. Being that this was my son, I wouldn’t have
went much farther than hiding a few facts from him. I don’t do it very often,
but I do it from time to time. I would say that overall I am an honest person,
but depending on how serious the negotiation process is and who the other party
is, I may hide more than I think. Just as the text states, aggressive goals can
lead to this, and I think it has in the past for me.
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