You may never have used the expression Consequences of No Agreement, but chances are that you've thought about them.  After all, you know that something is going to happen if you don't make a deal.  As the seller, your Consequences of No Agreement - your alternative to making a deal - is most likely going to be losing the sale.  Your customer generally has three possible alternatives to reaching agreement with you.  He or she can:

We very often hear people say that's it's difficult, if not impossible, to know the consequences for the other side.  And given the fact that most people don't think much about what it might mean to their customer to lose the deal, it's not particularly surprising that they feel that way.  The fact is, though, your customer really has only three likely Consequences of No Agreement (CNA):

Consequences of no agreement (CNA) analysis neutralizes virtually all of a buyer’s attempts to commoditize.  It paves the way for productive and more collaborative discussion about what is really being bought and sold. CNA analysis guides you through developing your total value proposition and mapping that value to the customer, one deal at a time, shifting the negotiation conversation away from just pricing.

I was struggling with a concept this morning and a friend of mine sent me this quote:  “When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don't blame the lettuce. You look for reasons it is not doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or less sun. You never blame the lettuce.

Yet if we have problems with our friends or family, we blame the other person. But if we know how to take care of them, they will grow well, like the lettuce. Blaming has no positive effect at all, nor does trying to persuade using reason and arguments.

That is my experience. No blame, no reasoning, no argument, just understanding.”
- Thich Nhat Hanh