Q. After some negative experiences at the bargaining table, I’ve started to worry that I simply don’t have the right personality to be a great negotiator. Is there anything I can do to improve, or should I leave negotiating to someone else?

Q. A group of nonprofit organizations and community activists has organized a campaign against our company. They’ve made all kinds of outrageous claims about the safety of our products ... I’ve been asked to meet with the group directly. Is this a good idea?

Q. I’m in a tough negotiation right now where the other side has made a very aggressive first offer. I know that I need to defuse his anchor, but I’m not sure how. What should I say and do?

Q. I’m aware of lots of unresolved personnel issues that seem to be festering in my department. I’m comfortable negotiating with customers, but I don’t know if I ought to get involved in these difficult, more personal matters. Shouldn’t I just mind my own business?

Q. “Due to the nature of my business, I often find myself negotiating under tight deadlines. Given that I commonly do not have any flexibility around my deadlines, do you have any advice on how to better hide this weakness?”

Q. “I’ve just finished reading No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller by Harry Markopolos, the whistle-blower in the Bernard Madoff scandal. Why do you think Markopolos was so ineffective at persuading the SEC that Madoff was a fraud? What does this story tell us about how to be persuasive in negotiation?”

Q. “I am about to begin a negotiation whose subject matter is squarely within my area of responsibility. However, the dollar amounts at stake are so large that I’m tempted to kick it upstairs to my boss, or at least involve my boss directly in the negotiation. What are the pros and cons of doing so?”

When weighing job offers, many students base their decision on vivid, high-prestige qualities such as salary or firm reputation, overlooking factors more relevant to their ability to thrive in the new position. These job-seekers, like all negotiators, are susceptible to “vividness bias.” How can you keep vividness from working against you? Here are a few ways to focus your attention in the right direction:

Suppose you’re about to face off with an “old school” negotiator whose reputation for hard bargaining precedes him. There are steps you can take to transform a potential zero-sum competition of wills into an interaction that is aligned toward problem solving—even when facing the hardest bargainer.