How Does Stress Affect Negotiations?

Putting pressure on the other to make a decision, forcing them to opt for an alternative – the one we want – are negotiation strategies that are widely used in business. The objective is to disturb the thought of the other, to divert his attention from the important elements to lead him towards the one that interests us. However, we will not always have the opportunity to lead the whole process. Sometimes it will be necessary to negotiate.

A negotiation process requires a little more than knowing how to communicate and being skilful at the level of explanations. Dealing with stress is also necessary, especially if we need to make decisions and seal deals quickly. The fact that time is getting dangerously short or that we have to give an immediate response can not only increase our level of nervousness but also determine the impact of our decisions at the company level.

How stress works in a negotiation process

As we have seen, stress can be present during a negotiation, especially if we feel that we are being pressured. While stress can sometimes be positive, in these cases it is not normally good company. The problem is how we handle it.

This feeling of “saturation” when negotiating can have many more underlying motives. A misunderstanding with the manager or co-workers, a project that was not delivered on time and put the company in a bad position or an excessive workload can lead to bad negotiation.

So, when stress takes over us, the first thing we experience is a feeling of suffocation. Ideas accumulate in our mind and prevent us from thinking clearly. Instead of doing it in an orderly and quiet way, chaos takes hold of us and we no longer know how to think correctly. So,  if we are stressed and have to negotiate, we are more likely to make the decision wrong. Or at least not leveraging our skills and strategies the way we should.

Sometimes  stress can lead us to try to run away, to get out of this situation because we just feel the pressure building up. It can also cause us to feel insecure about ourselves when negotiating and not knowing how to act or deal with any conflict that may arise, due to the great amount of energy we put into dealing with it. . Finally, it is also possible  that we adopt an uncompromising attitude towards the other person or that we do not express our opinions clearly.

Decrease stress during negotiations

Letting ourselves be carried away by stress will not bring us very pleasant consequences. It is important to learn to face it in order to emerge victorious and not let ourselves be overcome by pressure. For this, it is essential to follow the following steps.

• Go to the meeting being well prepared:  to negotiate, we must be informed. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to refute a justified opinion. We need sufficient knowledge on the subject. Knowing the opinions of other colleagues before participating in the negotiation can also be of great help in knowing what people might think.
• Practice active listening:  this is a key aspect in any negotiation. Before speaking, it is necessary to listen to others. What do they think? What points of view did they take? Where are they coming from? It is better not to hurry when speaking and listen carefully.

• Use emotional intelligence:  If stress arises during a negotiation, the tone may rise, we may become completely unable to listen to others and face an emotional explosion. It is therefore important to breathe, calm down and control your emotions. Knowing how to identify our emotions and those of others is an advantage in negotiating.
• Restart negotiation:  if the negotiation has turned around the bush or if the main motive has been lost sight of, it is possible to restart it from zero. For this, we can go back to the beginning or take it another day, when the spirits are calm and when we have sufficient information to conclude it.
• Negotiate quietly:  while it is true that we can spend a lot of time without making a decision because there is no deadline, it is important to know when we should postpone a negotiation or resume it if we do not. ‘let’s get nowhere. Speed ​​is not a good ally in negotiations.

Thus,  stress can be an element that activates us and sets us in motion to achieve our goals. However, if constant pressure arises when we have to negotiate, we can be completely overwhelmed.

If we know exactly how we have to conduct this negotiation, what its initial preparation is, how we can face possible conflicts and how we have to deal with the resulting stress, everything will be much simpler.

Our thoughts

Here are some habits to follow if you tend to suffer from stress and don’t know how to handle it properly.