Take negotiation trainings, seminars and workshops yourself to improve your teaching skills. Even if you are an experienced expert in negotiations, you can benefit from being a student and observing what elements of the training are effective in building and reinforcing skills. Note the instructor's teaching style, how engaged other participants are and the quality of the materials and activities used. Use your experiences as a student/participant to become a better negotiation training instructor.
Engage in careful planning and preparation for the training. Use past negotiation training evaluations and testimonials to identify training strengths and weaknesses. Be open to modifying your training in response to participant feedback. Seek out research on new, state-of-the-art approaches to negotiation so that your training materials remain current and relevant. One such resource is the Harvard Business School's Executive Education website.
Know your audience. Tailor your training to the skill level and needs of your attendees. A basic training is most useful to new negotiators entering the field, but may be below the skills, interests and needs of those seeking a refresher course. Align your materials with the field of your audience. For example, if the training is geared toward business representatives, do not use materials and examples that apply to crisis negotiations.
Provide models of expert negotiators so that attendees can emulate best practices in the field. Videos of actual negotiations are effective for role modeling strong negotiation skills and strategies.
Integrate ample opportunities for role-play activities. Negotiation skills are best reinforced through practice. Design negotiation scenarios for participants to act out and then offer a constructive critique of their performance. Another option is to videotape participants conducting negotiations at the beginning of the training and again at the end. Using these tapes, both you and participants can have a record of skills gained.
Cover the psychological influences in negotiation, not just skills and tactics. Teaching people how to resolve conflicts and reach agreements involves knowledge about human behavior and dynamics. Including psychological/social content can elevate the quality and usefulness of your training for your participants.