From the course: Negotiation Skills

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Avoid splitting the difference

Avoid splitting the difference

From the course: Negotiation Skills

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Avoid splitting the difference

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- One of the commonest negotiating phrases is split the difference. And I'd like to say that you are allowed to say it, you can give it a go, and it will probably work. But don't let anyone say it to you and get you to do it. I'll explain why. As always, we have buying and selling, which are the same, really, just opposite sides of the same coin. So let's say, in this situation, that you're buying. So you're offering, say, $800 for a $1,200 sofa. Maybe your first offer was 600, and you've come up to 800. And the sofa seller has come down from 1200, and is now on 850. And then he or she says, "How about splitting the difference, say, 825?" It's tempting to accept it, particularly since they've come down a lot. And let's assume that you love the sofa, you can easily afford it, it's the last one they've got, and you really don't want to lose it. But no, you mustn't. You must say, "Thanks, but I just can't. "I really…

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