10 Suggested Books on Negotiation
In this article, our CEO, Cynthia Farber, recommends ten books you must read if you want to negotiate like an expert. Get them, read them and secure better results!
In this article, our CEO, Cynthia Farber, recommends ten books you must read if you want to negotiate like an expert. Get them, read them and secure better results!
We negotiate virtually since birth and, while many times we do it spontaneously and unconsciously, it is a skill we can (should?) improve. Part of what is necessary to become a better negotiator has to do with first-hand experience but having a conceptual background is just as important. This time, if you want to build your technical and theoretical knowledge of effective negotiation tactics and tools, we recommend these key books that should be on your bookshelf.
Cynthia, who teaches seminars and gives lectures on effective negotiation in several institutions, shares her top-ten books to master the art of solving conflicts and reaching agreement.
1. Getting to Yes — Roger Fisher and William Ury (1981)
This book and its authors are a modern classic in the world of negotiation. Despite having been published in 1981, “Getting to Yes” is still a must-read and has helped millions of people improve their negotiation techniques. Groundbreaking in the field of negotiation, it is based on the work of the “Harvard Negotiation Project,” a group devoted to all levels of negotiation and conflict resolution.
Where do I find it?
2. Getting Ready to Negotiate. The Getting to Yes Workbook — Roger Fisher and Danny Ertel (1995)
Based on the philosophy and advice presented in “Getting to Yes” (our previous recommendation,) Roger Fisher and Danny Ertel later bring us – virtually as a sequel – “Getting Ready to Negotiate”: A practical, easy-to-read book to help you design the negotiating strategy that best fits your profile and needs. It features case studies, charts, and forms for building a personalized negotiating strategy.
Where do I find it?
3. Negotiation — Harvard Business Essentials (2003)
There’s nothing better than a book published by the most prestigious university in the United States (at least as far as negotiation goes.) “Negotiation” was released in 2003 and provides an excellent structural foundation in the basics of negotiation skills development. It is well written and uses simple language, making it useful for both the novice negotiator and any company manager or director for whom negotiation is a daily responsibility.
By way of a sneak peak, in one of the chapters, the author identifies the barriers that may hinder a negotiation and explains how to recognize and overcome them on the spot.
This book features a worldly famous and highly recommended negotiation model. A change of paradigm about the way we negotiate and why.
Where do I find it?
4. 99 Negotiating Strategies — David Rosen (2016)
“99 Negotiating Strategies” is considered the most complete catalogue of negotiating tactics ever published, especially of what is commonly called “hard” negotiation. Written by David Rosen, this book serves as a guide for lawyers and negotiators in general to use in their negotiations.
Rosen also explains principles more related to the psychological and emotional fields, principles he researched and tested personally for decades.
Each technique is briefly and accurately described, some followed by practical examples.
An extremely useful book to put these tactics to the test or, if they do not fit your style, to pinpoint when your adversary is using them, so you know how to react and respond.
Where do I find it?
5. Difficult Conversations — Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen (2000)
Did you know it is possible to hold difficult conversations with less stress and more successful results? The key to achieve that is in this book published by the “Harvard Negotiation Project.”
The book includes a number of suggestions and tips to decode the structure of a negotiation, identify the meaning of what is not being said, as well as overcome attacks and accusations.
The primary goal is to remember what we are negotiating for, what our interests are, what we need to get from that conversation, to recognize why it gets difficult for us, and discuss what really matters to us, setting aside issues that may affect the relation and will lead to no positive outcome.
Where do I find it?
6. Beyond Reason. Using Emotions as You Negotiate — Roger Fisher and Daniel Shapiro (2006)
Another masterpiece by Roger Fisher! This book won the Outstanding Book Award for Excellence in Conflict Resolution from the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution.
In our first recommendation, we discussed “Getting to Yes”, in which Fisher presented a universally applicable method for negotiating personal and professional disputes effectively. This time, the author wrote – together with Harvard psychologist Daniel Shapiro – a manual on how to solve conflicts despite the emotional weight we all carry when negotiating. In short, how to use these emotions in a smart way.
Get ready to learn how to turn a disagreement – big or small, professional or personal – into an opportunity that benefits both sides.
Where do I find it?
7. In a Different Voice — Carol Gilligan (1982)
We recommend this very significant book that has empowered women since as early as 1982. Carol Gilligan set a revolution into motion with this book and had the voice of women heard, by their own right and with their own integrity, almost as if for the first time in the theoretical field of gender studies. The impact of this book was immediate and lingers on, not only in the academic world.
How is this book related to negotiation? A direct correlation might be difficult to see at first but negotiation always relates to communication and relationships, and both issues have considerably evolved in the last years due to changes in gender-related approaches.
Nowadays, gender topics have fortunately found their way into the agenda. Whether you are a man or a woman, we suggest you don’t miss the opportunity to read and learn from this book.
Where do I find it?
8. Women Don’t Ask — Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever (2004)
Linda Babcock once heard that women don’t access many places because they “don’t ask”, mainly because it is hard for them or they are afraid they might harm a relation, or they think people would react negatively.
Strongly motivated by this subject, in “Women Don’t Ask”, Linda and Sara go over the different barriers encountered by women and the social forces that limit them. They teach how to reconsider their interactions, assess opportunities and ask for what they want in a way that makes them feel comfortable.
They also shed some light on how institutions, upbringing, and unspoken beliefs fuel inequality. “Women Don’t Ask” is the first book that pinpoints the huge difference between men and women when it comes to negotiating.
You shouldn’t miss this one.
Where do I find it?
9. Nonviolent Communication — Marshall Rosenberg (2000)
Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is a communication process designed by the author of this book in the 1970s. What is it based on? The belief that human beings have the ability to be compassionate and only resort to violence or harmful behavior towards others when they fail to acknowledge more effective strategies to satisfy their needs.
A fascinating theory developed by Rosenberg who, in this book, proposes that if people can identify these needs, other people’s needs, and the emotions surrounding them, harmony may be achieved and, ultimately, nonviolent communication.
In times where aggression, intimidation and violence seem to be the primary forms of relation, this book is both disruptive and crucial.
Where do I find it?
10. Relaciones Creativas — Francisco Ingouville (2004)
What could be better than a book that collects both modern and ancient stories about negotiation? And written by an Argentine author!
This book compiles tales and short stories from different times and backgrounds, as well as experiences lived by the best negotiators in the world.
Useful for every negotiator, this book teaches theoretical concepts through case studies and the great power behind the stories themselves.
While I highly recommend this book, one of the stories includes a blatantly sexist joke I strongly condemn. I wrote to the author about this once and, if a new edition is published, I hope they will remove this sexist, tasteless “joke”.
Other than that, it is a useful and entertaining book you should read.
Where do I find it?
Now it’s your turn. Which negotiation books do you recommend?
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