BATNA
Strengthen your agreement by preparing your best alternative
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 99%
BATNA means the best alternative to a negotiated agreement: the strongest course of action available if the current negotiation produces no deal. Preparation begins by clarifying the interests the agreement is supposed to satisfy, then deliberately imagining non-agreement and identifying independent routes to those same interests. The negotiator selects and, where possible, improves the best realistic route before returning to the table. This alternative provides a comparison point for the proposed deal and reduces psychological dependence on a yes. Ury argues that this apparent preparation for failure can make agreement more likely because the negotiator enters with greater confidence. The mechanism is not negativity or threat. It is reclaiming control over important interests instead of assuming the counterpart is the only path to them.
Origin
Roger Fisher and William Ury coined the acronym BATNA in Getting to Yes for the best alternative to a negotiated agreement.
Core principles
- 01An agreement is not the only route to your interests
- 02Alternatives create confidence
- 03Prepare for non-agreement before entering the room
- 04Define the interest before choosing the alternative
How to run it
- 1
Clarify the interest
Ask what you truly want from the situation, then make the answer operational and specific.
Pro tip Listen for emotionally weighted words that reveal a deeper interest.
Watch out A list of demanded terms is not yet a list of interests.
- 2
Assume no deal
Imagine that agreement with this counterpart is impossible. Ask what else you could do to satisfy the interests you identified.
Pro tip Treat this as alternative positive thinking rather than defeatism.
- 3
Generate alternatives
List practical courses of action available without the other side, such as another offer, client, sector, or route to the goal.
Pro tip Include imperfect options; an actionable fallback can still increase confidence.
Watch out Do not count options you cannot realistically execute.
- 4
Choose and improve the best
Select the alternative that most effectively advances your interests and strengthen it before the negotiation.
Pro tip Concrete progress on the alternative matters more than vague possibility.
- 5
Compare before agreeing
Evaluate the proposed agreement against the prepared alternative. Accept only when the deal serves your interests better.
Pro tip Carry the confidence of having another route without turning it into aggression.
Watch out Do not become so attached to fighting that you ignore a better agreement.
In the wild
Ury contrasts a candidate entering a salary negotiation with one interview and no fallback against someone who researches other roles, considers a sector move or education, and perhaps obtains another offer. Even a less attractive offer provides something concrete in the candidate's back pocket.
→ The candidate negotiates with more confidence and may become more likely to reach agreement.
A Brazilian businessman locked in a corporate battle identified freedom to spend time with family and make deals as his real interest. Ury asked what he could do if no agreement occurred. He took a family vacation and opened an office to make deals, discovering that his rival did not control those interests.
→ He relaxed, negotiated a settlement, and said he got his life back.
Common mistakes
Starting with terms
A fallback cannot serve you well until you know the deeper interests the terms are meant to advance.
Mistaking BATNA for pessimism
Refusing to imagine non-agreement leaves you dependent and less prepared.
Using a fictional alternative
A bluff does not provide the control or confidence of an executable course of action.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best before negotiations where neediness, uncertainty, or a weak walk-away position could distort judgment.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal when used as a bluff rather than a realistic course of action that advances the underlying interests.
From the transcript
“it's your best course of action if you cannot reach agreement it's your plan B”
“what am I going to do to satisfy my interests if I am not able to reach agreement with the other side”
“having a batna in my experience makes it more likely that you can actually reach an agreement”
From the episode
#721: Master Negotiator William Ury — Proven Strategies and Amazing Stories from Warren Buffett, Nelson Mandela, Kim Jong Un, Hugo Chávez, and More
William Ury