Prepping for a negotiation in twenty minutes: research, arguments, BATNA, and rehearsal

I'm preparing for a business negotiation with [company name, tax
ID], industry [industry], size [estimated headcount]. We're
discussing [subject of the negotiation, e.g. renewing an annual
campaign management contract].

Research public sources and return:
1. What the company actually does and where its main revenue
   comes from — in your own words, not a rewrite of their
   website copy.
2. What's changed for them in the last 12 months: new products,
   expansion, layoffs, leadership changes, acquisitions,
   investment.
3. Publicly available signals about financial health (financial
   statements, registry filings, press releases) and what year
   they're from.
4. Who their main competitors are and where the competition has
   pulled ahead of them in the last year.
5. Three things they're probably most focused on right now — and
   for each, note what you're basing that on.

Cite a source and date for every claim. Where you're not sure,
write “unverified” instead of guessing. Don't speculate about
internal matters that aren't public.

Two people will represent the other side at the negotiation:
- [role 1, e.g. marketing manager, my existing contact, we've
  worked together for two years]
- [role 2, e.g. procurement, someone I've never negotiated with,
  whose public profile shows prior experience at a retail chain]

Don't build a psychological profile of the specific individuals.
Instead:
1. For each role, describe what its typical goal is in a
   negotiation like this, and how success is usually measured
   in that role.
2. Where the interests of these two roles typically diverge —
   and how I can use that without pitting them against each
   other.
3. Which of them is likely to decide on price and which on
   scope.
4. Three questions I should verify at the start to find out
   whether this read is right.
5. What in my offer appeals to each of them differently — one
   sentence per role that I could actually say to them.

Keep it short, in bullet points.

Go through our correspondence with [company] over the last 24
months and prepare a factual overview ahead of the negotiation:

1. A timeline of the relationship: what we delivered and when,
   by milestone.
2. Scope changes we agreed on during that time — when, who
   raised it, and whether it was reflected in the price.
3. Points where conflict or dissatisfaction came up, and how
   they were resolved.
4. Promises we made and promises they made — with a date and a
   quote from the actual email.
5. What's still hanging, unresolved.

Work only from the correspondence, don't infer anything. For
every item, give a date and the subject line so I can look it
up myself.

I'm negotiating [subject]. My starting position is [request].
Situation: [3-5 sentences of context — how long the relationship
has run, what share of my income it represents, what's changed].

Help me clarify my position. Ask me one question at a time, not
all at once, and don't move on until I've answered:
1. What's actually important to me in this negotiation — and
   what just looks important because it's the thing that comes
   up first?
2. What's my ceiling, my realistic goal, and the point below
   which I won't go?
3. Besides price, what else is valuable to me (payment terms,
   scope, contract length, exclusivity, references, deadlines)?
4. Which of those am I willing to trade away for something else?

Once I've answered everything, summarize my position in ten
lines and flag any places where I'm contradicting myself or
where my walk-away point looks made up.

My goal in the negotiation: [goal]. Subject: [subject].
If the negotiation ends without a deal, I lose [what, exactly].

Break down my alternative to a deal:
1. List all my realistic options if we don't reach an agreement —
   including the uncomfortable ones. For each, estimate how long
   it would take to get moving and what it would cost me.
2. Which one is best, and how strong is it really (on a scale:
   locked in / in progress / just an idea in my head)?
3. What could I do this week to make it one notch stronger?
4. Estimate the same for the other side: how easily could they
   replace me, what would it cost them, and how long would it
   take?
5. From that, work out which of us has the stronger position,
   and tell me what I should watch for at the table to confirm
   it.

For point 4, clearly separate what's documented from what's
your guess.

I want to win [request] at the negotiation. Here are my reasons,
as they're in my head right now:
[list 5-8 bullets in your own words, unordered is fine]

The other side is [role and what they care about — from the
research].

Do three things:
1. Rewrite each of my reasons so it's framed around what the
   other side gets out of it, not what it cost me.
2. Rank them by strength, and for the three strongest, note what
   I can back them up with (a number, documentation, an example
   from our work together). Where I don't have backup, say so.
3. Cut any reasons that sound like a complaint or an entitlement
   — and explain, for each one, why it would hurt me at the
   table.

Write the phrasing the way I could actually say it out loud:
short sentences, no five-line run-ons.

At the negotiation I'll be pushing for [request] with these
arguments:
[insert the three strongest arguments from the previous step]

The other side: [role, what they care about, what pressure
they're under — from the research].

List 12 objections they might raise. Rank them from most to
least likely, and for each one give:
- the exact wording, the way they'd realistically say it
  (one or two sentences)
- what's actually behind it (a concern, a mandate, a tactic)
- my answer in two or three sentences I could say out loud
- what to avoid in that answer so it doesn't come across as
  defensive

At least three of the twelve should be uncomfortable enough to
actually catch me off guard — not polite little questions.
Include one objection you think I don't have a good answer to,
and say so.

Subject of the negotiation: [subject]. My goal: [goal].
What I know about the other side: [3-5 sentences from the
research].

Suggest 8 questions for me to ask — ones where the answer would
actually change how I run the rest of the negotiation. For each
one, note:
- why I'm asking (what I'll learn)
- when to ask it (at the start / after their offer / at the end)
- what it means if they answer evasively

Drop any questions I could answer myself or that ask about
things I already know. No questions that look like a trap or a
test.

Negotiation: [subject]. My goal: [goal], walk-away point:
[walk-away point].
My alternative if we don't reach a deal: [BATNA in one sentence].

Lay out three scenarios for how this could go:
A) Accommodating — they agree quickly, but with a condition
B) Tough — they refuse and push for the original terms
C) Stalling — they refuse nothing, but push the decision off

For each scenario:
1. How I'll know I'm in it (the first line that signals it)
2. Three decision points where what I should do changes
3. Exactly what I'll say at each of those points
4. Where the trap is in this scenario — what to watch out for
5. How to close it out if I can't reach my goal: what I walk
   away with instead of a deal (a written note, a deadline, a
   partial concession)

For scenario C specifically, tell me how to force a concrete
decision deadline without coming across as impatient.

Play [role — e.g. a procurement person at a large company] that
I'm negotiating [subject] with. Context: [3-4 sentences from the
research, no names].

Rules of the exercise:
- Stay in character until I say “break character.”
- Play it tough. Don't back down until you get a substantive
  reason.
- Open with [the hardest objection from phase 3].
- Talk the way people actually talk at the table: short, cut me
  off, push back with questions.
- Don't give me advice or comment on what I'm doing. Just play
  the role.

I'll open the topic. Respond one line at a time and wait for my
reaction.

Break character.

Evaluate my argumentation in this conversation:
1. Where I was defensive or apologized for my own request
   (quote the specific lines)
2. Where I backed down without getting anything in return
3. Which of my arguments was strongest, and why I should lead
   with it earlier
4. What I had prepared that I never used
5. Three lines I should say differently next time — show my
   original wording next to an improved version

Evaluate the argumentation, not the outcome. Be specific, no
generic advice like “be more confident.”

From everything in our prep, make a brief that fits ONE page,
that I'll bring to the negotiation. Format:

GOAL: one sentence
WALK-AWAY POINT: one sentence (the line I won't go below)
IF WE DON'T REACH A DEAL: one sentence

THREE ARGUMENTS: each as one sentence, the way I'd say it aloud
THREE QUESTIONS I'LL ASK: each as one sentence
THREE OBJECTIONS AND ANSWERS: objection | my answer (max 2
sentences)
FACTS I CAN CITE: max 5 lines, source for each
HOW I'LL CLOSE: what I walk away with even without a deal

Rules: no paragraphs, just lines. Nothing I can't read in two
seconds. Nothing I wouldn't say in my own words anyway. It has
to fit on one page even printed at size 12.

Here's my raw notes from the negotiation, dictated on the way
back, so it's disorganized and has half-finished sentences:

[insert dictation]

Turn this into structured notes for me (not for sending):
1. What we agreed on — only what was actually said
2. What's still open and who's supposed to resolve it
3. Any deadlines that came up, with dates
4. What the other side said about their priorities and
   constraints (useful for next time)
5. Where, based on these notes, I backed down, and what I got
   in return
6. What's unclear to me from the meeting and needs to be
   verified

Don't infer anything that isn't in the notes. Where the record
is ambiguous, write “unclear” and exactly what I need to fill in
from memory.

From these notes, write a summary email to the other side.

[insert notes]

Requirements:
- first paragraph: a one-sentence thank-you, straight into a
  summary of what we agreed on
- bullet points with specific items and deadlines
- clearly separate what's agreed from what's still awaiting
  confirmation
- close with one sentence asking for confirmation or additions
- no new terms that weren't raised at the table
- my tone: [businesslike / warm], maximum 200 words

Where you're not sure whether something was agreed or just
mentioned, put it in a note at the end for me instead of writing
it into the email.