When you left home for work this morning, did you feel ready to face the day knowing that you were going to have a number of successful negotiations? Chances are, the word "negotiation" never entered your head. Perhaps it should have!

We often think of negotiation as a formal process conducted behind closed doors by high powered executives, politicians or world leaders. Yet everyday all of us negotiate. You may have to agree with colleagues on the content of a report or presentation; with a customer over a disputed invoice; with a supplier on the terms for goods or services; or with your partner on what to have for dinner tonight! All of these things are negotiations.

Our problem is that we don't recognise them as negotiations, nor ourselves as negotiators. As a result, we enter these discussions less prepared than we could be. The result? Sometimes a less-than-successful outcome!

To help make all our daily negotiations more successful (for both you and the other party), you need to:

- State your case clearly and appropriately

- Organise your facts

- Control the timing and pace of your discussion

- Properly assess both yours and the other parties needs

How do you carry out these four points successfully? First, you need an understanding of some of the key principles of successful negotiation. Try this quiz to test your knowledge of negotiating by answering "True/False" to each question.

1. Should you ask for twice the amount you need?
2. Is your aim to prevent the other party from saying "No"
3. Will a small concession relieve the pressure?
4. A "Win/Win" result is always possible.
5. Is admitting to an error or omission a sign of weakness?

The following answers will provide some useful tips for your negotiating situations.

1. Should you ask for twice the amount you need? False. You will have to back down and will lose an important opportunity to influence the other party. Research clearly indicates that negotiators who make large concessions end up worse off. The secret of successful negotiating is to first identify your needs, then work out a range of options that will satisfy those needs. Start the negotiation by asking for the options that best meet your needs.

2. Is your aim to prevent the other party from saying "No"? False. In fact getting a "No" from the other party can be very useful because it gives you the opportunity to ask "Can you give me your reasons?". This leads to uncovering the other party's real needs and some options that will satisfy them