What A Balinese Monkey Can Teach You About Negotiation
Before getting into the meat of this article, there’s one universal principle that spearheads any negotiation. Namely, each party involved must possess something the other desires.
Regarding the Balinese monkeys at the Uluwatu Temple, they make it their business to get their hands on items of interest. These skillful pickpockets are legendarily infamous for robbing tourists of their belongings.
But these primates don’t run off after stealing someone’s iPhone and begin sharing outlandish photos on social media. Nor do they nab a wallet and invest their victim’s cash into the stock market.
The resourceful Balinese monkeys use whatever they get their hands on as a bargaining chip to procure what they value most: which is often food.
The fact that these impressive troublemakers have the intellectual capacity to make these trades is mindboggling enough. However, it goes far beyond that — the Balinese macaque monkey isn’t some run-of-the-mill hack when it comes to deal-making. No, they’re shrewd negotiators with a knack for getting what they want and grasping what humans value most.
Let’s explore how this works:
Balinese Monkeys Have a “Value Radar”
Dr. Jean-Baptiste Leca is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Lethbridge in Canada. He spearheaded a study that discovered how Balinese Monkeys at Uluwatu don’t target any mere item. Instead, they possess the innate ability to suss out what their targets value most.
The result? They have a leg up in their negotiation with their targeted human because they’ve got their hands on the most desirable items.
The primates understand that tourists won’t sweat over a lost hairpin or half-drank cups of pop. It’s items such as smartphones, laptops, prescription glasses, and wallets that the Balinese monkeys know hold power.
This summation comes after a 273-day endeavor where interactions were filmed between the animals and temple visitors. And in that time, it became 100% evident that the macaque in question would make demands for better rewards for higher-valued items (i.e., more food).
Negotiations could last several minutes — the most prolonged encounter lasting 25 minutes, which involved a 17-minute negotiation.
Interestingly, when items weren’t as valuable, the macaque would typically accept a lesser reward.
What Can You Learn From these Business-Savvy Monkeys?
When you’re negotiating, it might not be about procuring a bunch of bananas. Nor are you gaining any advantages by pickpocketing items of value.
But there’s one lesson you can learn from the Balinese monkeys and their savvy antics — they grasp what the other party values most.
While the endgame is the same, people will approach their negotiations much differently than monkeys.
So, how do you get the upper hand on the opposing party during a negotiation? More specifically, how do you figure out what they want?
Obtaining the Necessary Information
The Balinese monkeys of Uluwatu can rely on instincts, evolution, and intuition to guide their techniques.
In fairness, humans are much the same. Those above factors do play a role during a negotiation — those innate abilities help any dealmaker. But you can help yourself throughout these bartering sessions by picking up on cues.
For instance, there’s often a brief chit-chat before you get down to the nitty-gritty of the negotiation. During this period, you extract bits of data and personal information. Do yourself a favor here by having the names written down of all parties involved.
The Best Places to Learn About Your Opposing Party
You need to know whom you’re dealing with. In today’s landscape, that means using available resources to perform background research before a negotiation. Find out about the opposing party’s past negotiations and learn about the types of agreements they’ve reached.
Also, cut out the middleman and reach out to others who’ve negotiated with your “opponent.” This removes any gossip from the situation and gives you real-world examples of what to expect, often shedding light on what the other person values most.
Lastly, the internet holds many answers, but you’ll have to use sources specific to the opposing party. For instance, a lawyer should be researched through the Bar Association. Whereas information about an entrepreneur could be located through a business community page.
List of Your Most Valuable Information in a Negotiation:
● The other party’s goals
● Company information (e.g., where it currently stands and its interests/motivations)
● The opposing party’s weaknesses and strengths as negotiators
● Their negotiation history (what they’ve achieved)
● Who’s making the decision?
Are Negotiations Mere Monkey Business?
In a sense, negotiations are — in fact — monkey business. That’s what the Balinese monkeys have taught us. But that only speaks to how serious bartering can be since these primates are focused on survival.
Still, the macaque’s lesson makes it clear — by finding out about your opposing party’s motivations and values, even a monkey can get what they want from a negotiation.
