Coaching practices for Why Negotiations Stall

Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For Why Negotiations Stall, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.

Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?

• The deal is closed and fine, but I keep negotiating in the dark
• We’re stuck head-to-head over a single number, both digging in on what we’re demanding, and I keep sensing that if I understood what’s actually driving their number
• We’re completely deadlocked on the one number
• We’re deadlocked because they’re certain the numbers will land one way and I’m just as certain they won’t
• This has turned into a pure contest of who’s more stubborn, and whoever caves first "loses"

Practices that may help

1. Run a negotiation debrief to learn what value was left on the table
   After closing, compare priorities with the other side to see the trades you both missed.
   Expanding the Pie: Negotiation Beyond Splitting the Difference
2. Probe for interests, not positions
   Ask why the other side wants what they say they want before responding to what they say.
   Expanding the Pie: Negotiation Beyond Splitting the Difference
3. Expand the ZOPA by adding issues to the negotiation
   When you’re stuck on a single issue, adding more issues often creates room for trades that satisfy both sides.
   ZOPA: The Zone of Possible Agreement
4. Write contingent contracts when forecasts disagree
   If you and the other side have different predictions, let the outcome decide who was right.
   Expanding the Pie: Negotiation Beyond Splitting the Difference
5. Insist on objective criteria
   Anchor the deal to independent standards — market rates, precedent, expert opinion — not willpower.
   Getting to Yes: Principled Negotiation
6. Use a post-settlement settlement to improve a deal after agreement
   Once you have a deal, offer to keep exploring whether a better one exists for both sides.
   Expanding the Pie: Negotiation Beyond Splitting the Difference
7. Distinguish substantive, procedural, and psychological interests
   The interest behind a position is often not about the money or the terms — it may be about face, fairness, or control.
   Interests vs. Positions: The Core of Integrative Negotiation
8. Negotiate: know your minimum and be willing to give and take
   Decide in advance what you are willing to accept short of your full ask, and be ready to offer something in exchange.
   DEAR MAN: DBT’s Skill for Asking for What You Want Effectively
9. Insist on objective criteria to evaluate options
   Agree on an independent standard — market rate, precedent, expert opinion — before applying it to the specific deal.
   Principled Negotiation, Made Practical
10. Evaluate offers on their content, not on the timing of when they arrived
    A good offer that comes late in a negotiation is still a good offer — don’t discount it because of sunk cost.
    The Flinch and Reactive Devaluation, Made Practical

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