Concession Obsession?

Just a quick observation about something I see rather often among negotiators who really like to compromise.

Of the five core negotiating styles (competitiion, avoidance, accommodation, compromise and collaboration), all have their place. Some are better to deploy in some situations than others, depending on the magnitude of the stakes involved and the degree to which the negotiating parties will retain a relationship of some sort following the bargaining process.

I myself have a default bargaining style of accommodation with a strong follow up of collaboration. This means I'm very good at understanding and looking out for the other party's interests, but I will also assert myself to get my interests addressed as well. I tend to keep relationships intact. I'm experienced enough to behave very competitively as the situation warrants. Other people have other strengths, and they are all useful.

Of all the bargaining styles, the one I deploy the least is compromise. I don't like to just split the difference if I can avoid it. I'd rather change the scope of the issues somehow to work around the arbitrary middle ground, and I'm also a bit pigheaded and passionate about standing up for a solution I think is right. I never argue for something I don't believe in, and when I believe in it, I'm all in.

Whatever my own biases, compromise (or "split the difference") is a good strategy at the end of a bargaining process just to get a good deal done, but the people whose first tendency is to compromise tend not to do very well as bargainers.

Why?

They are very susceptible to giving up their own goals very quickly, and very often, they soften their counteroffers before they even gain a concession from their counterparts. There's more than one way of negotiating against yourself. There's nothing wrong with setting ambitious goals: in fact, you should do so. But if someone comes at you with a fairly aggressive, but more or less credible, bid or offer, stick to your guns. Don't soften your counteroffer, making an implicit concession up front. Let the process work for you. Don't concede if the other side is not also conceding, or else, expand the field of issues in play so that you can get something else you want, perhaps something more valuable to you, in exchange for your concessions.

Compromise is a good secondary strategy for any bargaining situation. But the other approaches are almost always better primary strategies, depending on the stakes and on any future relationship interests.