The Art of Negotiation

i vividly remember the first time i started negotiating bravely for something. you see, i used to be the typical 'play-it-safe' girl. if the teacher says deadline is tomorrow, then tomorrow it is. if the teacher says you bring this and that, i bring this and that. i do not like going against the norm. i used to admire the guts of my classmates wayback in high school and college who can sweetly talk their way out of some projects... or troubles. i stopped at admiring.

i graduated as a food technologist, and my first two jobs landed me cool slots in the the product development departments. i concocted the nacho king recipes and translated it to huge batches serving 25 stores. then i transferred to glico's to look into improving their product lines. i liked my job but i know i'm missing on something. deep inside, i am slowly dragged by the lure of the marketing world. so when the opportunity knocked, i didn't let it slip away.

our marketing officer resigned. i applied for the post, and obviosly, i got the arched eyebrows of my bosses and the silent stare (though i can hear them mocking me "you? marketing? you must be kidding!") days passed by, applicants had come and gone, yet they have not found the right one. then one day, i gave my boss an offer he cannot refuse -- i told him that while they are looking for the right one, i will handle the marketing AND the product development departments for the same salary i am receiving. we shook hands.

that dare was in 1998, and as they say, the rest is history!

i didn't know that, that negotiation will beget more negotiations -- with my future bosses, clients, suppliers, colleagues, subordinates, etc... oh, life is full of negotiations, compromises and deals! winning and losing depends on how you view it short-term, and long-term.

i learned that it does not necessarily have to cross the borders of my principles to achieve a win-win situation.

i learned that perception is powerful in negotiating, specially if you appeal to their self-interests.

i learned that negotiation protocols are just protocols.

i learned that there are 101 ways of skinnng a cat.

i learned that you do not have to quit on the first rejection, and that a 'no' presents in itself another opportunity.

i learned that in business dealings, relationships stand a better ground than portfolio.

i learned that you have to make sure that you are barking at the right tree.

i learned that you cannot always be assertive of your rights, and it takes prudence and humility to choose when not to.

and lastly, i learned that all of us on the negotiating sides are all but human!

and being here in dubai has honed it all the more! what with articulately persistent indians, assertive locals and egyptian flattery. after a lot of rubbing elbows with them, i am telling you i am not the same anymore from the shy and timid student that i was then...