BATNA is just honesty about what happens if the deal fails.
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The phrase BATNA — best alternative to a negotiated agreement — sounds like jargon and is actually just clarity. If the deal does not happen, what do you do tomorrow morning? The honest answer to that question is the floor of every negotiation you will ever have.
People who do not know their alternatives accept worse deals than they should. People who know them, and have rehearsed them, walk in calm.
Name your alternatives before the conversation starts. The conversation will go better because of it, even if the alternatives never come up.
