This is my column that will feature in Saturday's Financial Times, which can be found in the entrepreneurship pages of the Money section. You can also find my columns on the FT web site here: http://www.ft.com/mikesouthon

One of the major advantages of an economic downturn is that there are great deals to be had; the challenge is that many of us are very bad at negotiating.

There is clearly an element of 'nature vs. nurture' some of us are clearly genetically more inclined to haggle, while for others the process is more unpleasant and degrading than having teeth pulled.

This is especially true for salespeople who are typically outgoing and persistent, with a hide as thick as a rhinoceros. But when it comes to negotiating the detail of a deal, many experienced sales people crumble, especially under pressure from a well-trained negotiator or purchasing director.

Negotiation is a basic skill we use every day of our lives, whether it is making sure we get a cup of tea in the morning at home or in buying a car, when we are up against an expertly trained and highly motivated individual. Negotiation can be studied and learned, so for advice I went to talk to subject matter expert Derek Arden.

Arden started his working career in a bank in training and development, but soon found himself in major account management, negotiating with hard-nosed senior buyers at a large supermarket chain. He left the meetings with a strong feeling that he had come a distant second in the negotiation, if only because he was operating solo against a team of four people clearly expert in identifying and exploiting any of his personal or business weaknesses.

He resolved to read all the books available and go on courses to develop his own best practice for negotiation. He has since spent eight years passing on this knowledge to everyone from teams of salespeople to a high-profile individual in the Middle East who needed one-on-one coaching for family as well as business negotiations.

Arden explains that developing negotiation skills is a constant process; you always learn new techniques. Where most people fall down is in understanding the timing of a deal. This is aptly illustrated in his first major personal negotiating challenge, which was to arrange a favourable exit from the bank where he was working.

This is particularly relevant in these hard times; the natural mode of large organisations under economic pressure is to downsize, and for those employees with good skills, and crucially a good personal network, now is an excellent time to negotiate a mutually beneficial exit.

Arden's advice is that the secret to making a graceful departure from your current employer is to understand the timing; there will be a perfect time to leave, and forcing your own schedule on their internal processes can be very counter-productive.

This follows naturally into the key element of negotiation; Arden believes strongly that the most important work is done in advance. The better prepared you are, the more likely you are to secure a good deal for yourself and for the other party. Successful deal makers always ensure a win for both sides as they are always looking for a long-term relationship with the buyer.

The hardest part of negotiation is always the price, especially if the buyer gives no clue about what they want to pay. Arden suggests having three prices always to hand. First you should always have a high-value "dream price", which buyers will accept more often than you might suspect, for example if they need your products or services in a hurry or are looking to empty a budget before the end of the financial year or risk losing it for the following year.

Then you should have a "target" price which represents what you feel the customer should pay, based on both value for money for them and a sensible profit for you. Finally, you have a "walk away" price, below which you cannot go, based on hard evidence developed internally from your delivery and finance people.

In a friendly negotiation you can even share this information, and a fair buyer should appreciate your openness and respond favourably. It is important to remember that very rarely do people buy the cheapest offer; what is more important, especially in these hard times, is your providing proof of value for money and return on investment.

Arden also trains people in advanced techniques including influencing and body language, all based around asking good questions, prepared in advance. As Rudyard Kipling aptly put it, "I keep six honest serving-men; they taught me all I knew. Their names are What and Why and When, And How and Where and Who".

Derek Arden: http://www.derekarden.co.uk