The part of a negotiation that every negotiator wants to get to as quickly as possible is the closing. This is when your prize is in sight: The deal that you want is so close that you can almost reach out and touch it. However, it turns out that this is the most dangerous part of a negotiation - it can all slip away from you if you don't know how to navigate the closing correctly.

What you'll find inside:

• Six ways to break a negotiation deadlock (plus one more)
• Every negotiation needs a rap(port) star!
• Succeed by bringing the ghost whisperer to the negotiation
• A sales negotiator's guide to dealing with a deadlock

Negotiating is a skill that we hone by using it over and over again. Opportunities to practice our negotiating skills come in all shapes and sizes, and buying a car is one such event. Another way to get better at this thing we call negotiating is by watching what other professional negotiators do. Negotiations between businesses and their workers, such as Verizon and the CWA/IBEW, or even between two businesses, such as EA and Take Two, can offer us important learning experiences.

In labor negotiations, it's the balance of power that can often determine which side walks away from the bargaining table with the best deal. Over at Boeing, with the large number of different unions that the company has to deal with, this has been shown to be true over and over again.

In order to successfully close a negotiation, you need to have built up a strong foundation. This involves building rapport with the other side of the table and knowing just exactly who is calling the shots for the other side.