Practising for Negotiation Competitions: Lessons Learned Together
Last night at The Negotiation Club we had the pleasure of welcoming students from Athens University into a live practice session. They are preparing for an upcoming negotiation competition, and they joined our members to sharpen their approach using 3-Variable Negotiation Cards.
Bringing competitors into a practice environment changes the energy in the room. There is focus. There is intent. And there is a clear reminder that preparation and repetition matter.
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The Core Idea
Practice does not guarantee success in a negotiation competition.
But it dramatically improves the odds.
The Athens students are preparing for a structured competition environment. There will be;
- Time pressure.
- Observers.
- Scoring criteria.
- Performance anxiety.
- Unknown counterparts.
None of that disappears simply because you are talented or confident.
What does help is rehearsal.
In our session, we used 3-Variable Negotiation Cards. That means neither side was negotiating on price alone. Each party had three commercial variables to manage, trade and prioritise.
This immediately introduces complexity:
- sequencing,
- signalling,
- concession management, and
- internal team communication.
Competition negotiation is rarely about saying the most impressive sentence. It is about making disciplined decisions under pressure.
Why This Matters in Practice
When the Athens students joined, they negotiated as teams. That alone introduces a different dynamic.
In team negotiations, you must:
- Communicate clearly with your own team.
- Maintain consistent positioning.
- Avoid accidental concessions.
- Decide who speaks and when.
- Track movement across multiple variables.
Talking is not the same as communicating.
Several negotiators spoke fluently and confidently. But when we paused and analysed the exchange, it became clear that assumptions had been made. Positions were stated but not confirmed. Proposals were heard but not fully processed.
In competition settings, this is costly.
If you speak quickly but your counterpart does not fully understand, you create noise rather than progress. If you make a proposal but do not observe the reaction, you lose critical data.
This is why the discipline of slowing down matters.
It connects directly to the principle behind the “Pause, Consider, Respond” tactic and the skill of effective Summary. Slowing down allows you to check understanding. Summarising ensures alignment before movement.
Common Mistakes in Competition Preparation
Mistake 1: Over-focusing on what to say
Many competitors prepare scripts. They rehearse opening lines. They memorise persuasive phrases.
But negotiation competitions reward adaptability, not memorisation.
If you are overly committed to delivering your next sentence, you stop listening.
Mistake 2: Confusing speed with confidence
Fast responses can feel impressive. In reality, they often indicate a lack of processing time.
When negotiating multiple variables, rapid responses increase the risk of imbalance... giving away value in one area without securing equivalent movement elsewhere.
Mistake 3: Talking more than observing
One of the most powerful learning moments last night came when proposals were made and the other side’s reaction was subtle... a hesitation, a glance at a team-mate, a delayed response.
These micro-moments are rich with information.
If you are too focused on speaking, you miss them.
How to Practise This Skill
If you are preparing for a competition, or simply trying to improve your negotiation ability, practise this:
Exercise: Structured Slow Negotiation
- Use a 3-variable scenario (real or hypothetical).
- Agree that after every proposal, the responding party must pause for at least three seconds before speaking.
- The responding party must then summarise what they understood before replying.
- Observers track:
- Whether summaries are accurate.
- Whether any variable is conceded without reciprocal movement.
- Whether reactions are noticed and explored.
This is uncomfortable at first. Silence feels long. Summaries feel repetitive.
But this is where skill develops.
Slowing down forces clarity.
Summarising forces understanding.
Observation forces awareness.
These are competition advantages.
And they are advantages in real commercial negotiations too.
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Last night’s session with the Athens students was a reminder that talent is useful, but structured practice builds resilience. If you want to improve your odds, in competitions or in business, practise deliberately, and practise with intent.
If you want a place to practise properly (not just learn ideas), the club environment gives you repetition, feedback, and pressure-tested experience that transfers into the moments that matter.
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