Mastering the Art of Negotiation

You are negotiating every day, whether it’s with business partners, colleagues, in the
community or at home. The challenge isn’t to get as much for yourself as you can at the other’s expense. It’s in the art of searching together for possibilities that serve as many
interests as possible. The premise of this book is that it’s both possible and necessary
to create value together, distribute the consequences fairly, while strengthening the relationship. In times where ‘win as much as you can’ is on the rise worldwide, this is a refreshing alternative.

'Mastering the Art of Negotiation' goes beyond deal-making situations. It covers decisionmaking, solving problems together, leading and cooperating, creating partnerships, handling difficult situations, and managing the games people play. The book gives seven practical guides that help you prepare and manage negotiations at moments when the complexity and uncertainty increase. These guides create a comprehensive framework for your ongoing learning and development as a negotiator.

In practice, this helps you to:
• increase your awareness during your day to-day negotiation challenges
• prepare for both simple and more complex negotiation situations and processes
• handle increasing complexity in negotiations more consciously and with more resilience
• set up constructive dialogues
• gain insights into your personal pitfalls when under pressure
• develop both a mindset and skills set

Using this book and the toolkit will let you embrace complexity and uncertainty with a clear head, a warm heart and on nimble feet.

Also available in Dutch

Author

Geurt Jan de Heus is a medical doctor by training. After several years in management positions in the pharmaceutical industry, he changed his life and career to join RoutsLaeven. This small agency, founded 30 years ago, specialises in negotiation training, coaching and consulting. Geurt Jan is passionate about making the world a better place through more ‘constructive dialogues’. These dialogues are grounded in an open and exploratory mindset, with respect for others and yourself, aiming for fair distribution and fair processes.

Helping others to live out these principles with confidence and agility even when confronted with the oppositional win-as-much-as-you-can style is an important part of his mission.
His 20-plus years of experience mean that he is frequently asked to act as an advisor during difficult negotiation processes involving the public sector, larger corporations and family businesses.

Press

"The book ‘Mastering the Art of Negotiation’ by Geurt Jan de Heus builds on ‘Getting to Yes’, it deepens and broadens its most important elements and gives tools and guidance to start your own negotiation journey."
- [Translated from] BusinessInsider.nl

"Whether it’s about communication or creativity, trust or conflicts of interest, in this book you hear an experienced coach speaking. […] This makes ‘Mastering the Art of Negotiation’, just like your favorite cookbook with dog ears and annotations, a book to always carry with you."
- [Translated from] David Laws, Financieel Dagblad

"Illustrated with beautiful and compelling visuals, Geurt Jan de Heus has created an insightful and practical guide for negotiating win-win solutions.  Very useful indeed!”
- William Ury, Co-author, Getting to Yes and author, Getting to Yes with Yourself