Introduction to Negotiation

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Negotiation skills are essential in everyday life.

Nope, i’m not talking about the struggle with the used car salesman. I’m talking about our daily everyday lives. We negotiate everyday without even knowing about it.

Take for instance you are with a friend and you feel like having pizza for lunch while your friend on the other hand, wants Mexican food. It is up to you to negotiate a win-win situation.

So, this being an introduction to the different aspects of negotiation, i will now compare and contrast the various aspects of negotiations.

Firstly, lets look at bargaining.

This is the most obvious form of negotiation know to us, such as the used car salesman example mentioned earlier.

It occurs when a buyer interacts with a seller, and the objective for each party is to maximise each individual’s maximum gains.

However, this case presents a zero sum game to the buyer as well as the seller. A party’s gain is the other party’s loss.

If the salesman manages to convince the buyer to buy at a high price, the salesman wins but the buyer loses. It is a zero-sum game.

The second type of negotiation is the auction.

In this case, the buyers bid against each other, with no interaction between seller and buyer. It is a form of reverse bargaining where the buyers are trying to out-do one another to get the highest price.

Finally, the last form is negotiation.

Negotiation is a form of corporation, and not a confrontation. The unique thing about negotiation is that additional values can be created to provide a win-win senerio, and this distinguishes it from bargaining.

Let me illustrate this point with an example. In bargaining, when the car salesman and buyer haggle over the price, one party has to lose for the other party to win.

However, in negotiation, each individual can create additional pockets of value to sweeten the pot. The car salesman could throw in some freebies such as rust protector coating while the buyer could offer to pay upfront in cash. These allows a win-win situation to be created more easily.

Negotiation is a process between two or more parties in which they consider alternatives to arrive at mutually agreeable solutions. Do consider alternatives when trying to influence people to get your way. Be a better communicator, today!

If you are interested in this post, do consider checking out the related posts in the negotiation mini series.
- An Introduction to Negotiation
- The Three Stages of Negotiation
- Negotiation Tactics - Part 1
- Negotiation Tactics - Part 2

10 Attention Grabbers for Better Public Speaking

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A good speech will definitely make use of attention grabbers. In public speeches, the audience will generally have rather short attention spans.

Hence, in long speeches that are 2 hours or more, there is a need to have more compelling attention grabbers in order to capture and maintain the audience’s attention.

Let us look at some features of an effective attention grabber.

- Firstly, effective attention grabbers are sometimes unexpected

- Secondly, audiences usually have their own worries and troubles on their minds. Does the attention grabber break the pre-occupation that is pre-existing in their minds?

- Next, does it generate curiosity in the minds of the audience?

- Finally, does the attention grabber relevant to the message of the speaker? Does it create a positive relationship?

With these factors in mind, let us look at 10 commonly used attention grabbers.

1. Ask a question – Asking a question challenges the mind of the audience, putting them in a thinking active mode instead of a receiving passive mode. A question is easy to ask and also serves as an effective tool to buy the speaker time to think about the next point.

2. Use an anecdote or story – Everybody loves a good story, so why not tell a good one? This story can be anything in the real world that is related to your topic.

3. Give a definition – This technique is good for speeches at scientific conferences for instance, and helps to clarify ambiguous terms within the speech.

4. Use a quote – A quote, when used appropriately, can easily be used to motivate, inspire or enthrall an audience.

5. Use an analogy – This technique involves likening the topic of subject to a more understandable frame of reference that the audience can understand. It is useful when describing certain features or benefits.

For example, you could say; “Finding the correct job ls like finding the correct pair of shoes, you know when you have found a perfect fit.” By using an analogy to relate your focus to a more common image, this will allow the audience to relate to your message more easily.

6. Use humor – It is common knowledge that audiences enjoy funny speeches. However, the trick to a good attention grabber is to use humor that is relevant to the topic.

7. Relate a personal experience – Personal experiences shared under this context must firstly, be interesting. Secondly, it has to be related to your message. The audience must be able to make the link between your story and your message or else what you will be doing is merely to tell the audience a story about yourself.

8. Give a demonstration – Conducting a demonstration helps people who like to absorb information visually. It also helps provide variety to your speech and serves as an interesting distraction to a tired audience.

9. Do a survey – A survey involves a question posed to the entire audience with the intention of determining their response as a group based on a show of hands. This allows you to count the response and will give you a rough idea of the situation.

10. Give a quiz – A quiz is similar to an actual test where questions of a more specific nature are posed to each member of an audience. It is generally not used for presentations of a more formal nature and is more appropriate for training-type workshops.

Attention grabbers are an important aspect to a successful public speech. It grabs and holds the attention of the audience allowing you to deliver your message with impact. Use attention grabbers to communicate better, today!

If you have found this post useful, you might be interested in the following
- The 3 Simplest Steps to a Better Vocal Presentation
- Control your Presentation Fears
- Give Better Oral Presentations

You might also be interested in
How to Give Your Best Speech or Presentation Ever: A Step-by-Step Manual for Speaking in Public

When a Wedding Invitation becomes Bad News

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Imagine receiving a wedding invitation and groaning in dismay. Can’t imagine it? Well, South Koreans can.

“I will have to fork out USD147 to attend 3 weddings,” lamented a 25 year old South Korean clerk, who earns about USD$1750 a month.

A recent report in the local newspaper highlighted the plight that many South Koreans face. Currently, South Koreans have a tradition of supporting one another by giving money at each wedding occasion.

According to their National Statistical Office, each household gave out an average of USD505 last year. (Average monthly household income is USD 3,509 as of 1Q 2007 according to the Korea National Statistical office)

According to a market research company, 90 percent of South Korean workers reported to be “stressed” by the expenses incurred during such occasions.

South Korea is an example of a typical society which places a greater emphasis on connections. Such practices are essential in maintaining a person’s social networks and are essential if reciprocation is expected on your own special occasions.

For some people, the practice of giving money at a wedding is an opportunity to highlight a person’s relationship with the family of the newlyweds. This has implications even in the business world as well. When children of important business leaders get married, many unfamiliar faces often show up with such gifts.

The act of being generous with your time as well as your money is an important aspect in being a people person. Most successful businessmen are known to be generous with their money when it comes to entertaining.

To become better liked, perhaps you should consider adopting a more generous mindset. Give and you shall receive. It is part of removing the focus from yourself and focusing on the needs of others. Only then will you be able to relate better to others and achieve the happiness that all of us crave as a result.