Essentials of Negotiation – Be A Negotiation Specialist!

Some people make it look really easy – closing deals and winning great transactions without breaking sweat. But do you know that there are ways to become an expert on the essentials of negotiation and getting things done your way? The benefits of knowing the essentials of negotiation are endless!

You can score many opportunities, create better professional relationship with customers and ultimately enhance your career. Read on to discover the essentials of negotiation and reap the benefits…

1. Maintain a relaxed mood. Keep a friendly but emotionally resigned front. It helps to be patient. In the total length of time it takes to negotiate, decisions and compromises are met at the last remaining minutes of the discussion. Keep it cool.

2. Always have your focus in mind. No matter where the conversation leads to or how hard the other party tries to mislead you, jump back to the topic at hand and retain your focus. Though this seems so simple, it is actually considered one of the essentials of negotiation.

3. Be open to options. Hey, who says you’re supposed to get it all done on your own terms all the way? If it’s not possible, don’t just give in to the other person, ask for other options. Better yet, suggest some of your own. Do make sure though, that your suggestions are still within your negotiating capacity.

4. Point out both the “good” and the “bad”. Making good negotiations entail many different decisions. In order to make good decisions, all the sides of an idea should be clear and known by both parties. Be sure you mention the risks involved while you state the benefits. It won’t do your conscience any good if you won a deal by covering up some “cons” involved. The essentials of negotiation require you to be dedicated to your goal but also virtuous to avoid a possible backlash from unsatisfied clients.

Good negotiators are not born with negotiation skills; they have learned and polished such skills through time. Knowing the essentials of negotiation will not only get you through that deal, it will make you spell success through the greater opportunities of life!

Quality Presentation Ensures Law of Attraction

These days, it seems as though grammar, spelling and punctuation have gone the way of the 250 KB computer. With chat and text messaging, there’s hardly a need… right? Wrong!

As business people, it is imperative that you check and double-check ANYTHING you send out to promote your business. I can understand if you are doing a quick chat or text message with a friend. That’s private.

But in business, it’s all about credibility. You may be very good at what you do and you always want to put your best presentation forward. If you don’t take the time to present yourself well, you may leave doubt in the mind of a potential client.

Would you choose to do business with the limo that has a dent in the side and a few scratches? Or the shiny, new-looking one?

If you are looking for a surgeon, would you choose the one who wears an old plaid hunting shirt and dungarees with holes in the knees and has an office with beat-up furniture from the 1960′s? Or one who has clean office with modern furniture, wears dress slacks, a dress shirt and a white coat?

It is no different with your marketing pieces.

A poorly written email could cause the reader to hit the delete key before they are finished. A poorly written sales letter, or brochure, are certainly destined for the trash bin. And, let’s face it, no one has time for a poorly written website.

You can talk about the Law of Attraction all day long, say affirmations, meditate, etc, but if you are not presenting yourself in line with what you want to attract, it’s a bust.

If the technical side of writing is difficult for you, what can you do? It’s all well and good to find a friend to look over your latest writing, and if they are an exceptional writer, that may be sufficient. Otherwise you want to hire a professional editor.

An editor will go through your writing and make sure that you are getting your message across to your audience. They will check your grammar, punctuation and spelling to be sure everything is correct.

With a small item, it won’t cost you much, but will enhance your presentation and probably increase your response rate over time. If you are sending out frequent emails or marketing pieces, you may want to keep an editor on retainer. In other words, you pay them, up front, x amount of dollars for x amount of hours of work. That way they are available when you need them.

The little money you spend will be well worth it. You can feel confident that you are presenting your business, and yourself, in the best light possible and are attracting the quality clientele your seek for your business.

Christmas Gifts for Toddlers – Make the Presents Last More Than a Day

When I go through the toy store or a Wal-Mart with my three year old, I know exactly what he will say. “Oh,” he’ll exclaim with a mix of excitement and surprise. “I want THAT for Christmas!” What toddler boy doesn’t want a new train, truck, racecar or fighter jet? It’s a safe guess your toddler has a long list too. The question is, how can parents make the Christmas gifts last? How can you help your toddler enjoy and appreciate his new things for many days instead of five minutes of glory? Here are a few ideas that have worked for us and our friends:

1. Enjoy 12 days of Christmas. Do you have presents stacking up from grandma, grandpa, aunts and uncles? Or perhaps you’ve purchased 5 or 6 presents for junior yourself. Try starting Christmas on December 13th and allow your toddler to open one present per day until Christmas. This will spread out the excitement and allow your toddler to enjoy each gift. Why just have one day of Christmas when you can have twelve?

Now many of us don’t have enough gifts piled up to begin opening on December 13. Try opening a gift a day starting on December 20, or just open one on Christmas Eve, most gifts on Christmas day, and save one gift for New Year’s. The idea is to spread out the Christmas cheer.

2. If you’re traveling, open some gifts before your trip and after. If you’re headed to grandma’s house, the last thing you want to do is load your already packed suitcase with your toddler’s new bike. You can open your gifts at home before or afterwards. It’s always fun to save a gift at home so when you need some incentive for your toddler to behave well during that plane ride, you’ve got something to offer.

3. Do something special for someone else. Teach your toddler to give gifts to the less fortunate so he can be more grateful for the avalanche of things he will receive. This year, our family packed a shoebox full of toys for Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan’s Purse. That shoebox will be delivered to a boy who may live in a slum in Calcutta, or an orphanage in Johannesburg. Your toddler will remember the shoebox and begin to understand that there are many children in the world who have very little.

4. Re-gift! Search for a forgotten toy around the house, something your toddler used to love playing with six months ago. Wrap it up and give it to him again. You’ll be amazed at how much fun he’ll have with his long lost friend or toy.

Your toddler will have a Christmas to remember as you try these gift giving ideas!