Real-Life Negotiation Situations You feel you’ve been had. Sucker-punched. Taken for a ride. Why? You’ve been talking to your next-door neighbors about their cell phone ser- vice, and you find out that they are paying roughly half the monthly rate that you
are paying! To make matters worse, you learn that their phone has text-messaging,
a camera, no roaming charges, AND e-mail capability! Your cell phone does not
have these functions. And the final insult? They didn’t have to sign a contract—
and you still have 18 months left on yours. At first you get mad, thinking the phone company made a mistake that is costing you money. After all, you pride yourself on being an informed consumer—
how else could this have happened? Then you ask your neighbor how he got such
a good deal.
He tells you that he and his wife simply negotiated the agreement
when they switched providers. Boy, do you feel frustrated and foolish. You realize
how easy if would have been for you to have negotiated the same deal, if only you
had tried. The fact is that most people miss many opportunities to negotiate in their pro- fessional and personal lives. Negotiating is a critical ability that many of us lack,
yet anyone can become a competent negotiator. It simply requires
(1) knowing when a particular situation is ripe for negotiation;
(2) knowing who is able to make a decision for the other party (you often need to ask to speak with the supervisor or manager in charge); and
(3) knowing how to negotiate. Read this easy-to-follow book, and learn how to negotiate by practicing a few tactics presented here. As you read, you’ll be amazed at all the everyday situations in which having the ability to
negotiate effectively can enrich your life.
