Negotiation and Trust

I just returned from the Global Summit on Negotiation and Trust in Phoenix, Arizona.  It was a three day workshop:   http://globalsummitonnegotiation.com/ The summit was held at the Thunderbird School of Global Management, and focused on these areas:

  • Foundations of trust in negotiation
  • International negotiations and cross-cultural considerations
  • The psychology of influence & persuasion in negotiation
  • Brand development and trust
  • High-stakes negotiations
  • Commercial procurement
  • Managing emotions and stress in negotiation


It was led by a panel of distinguished speakers that ranged from Divya Narendra one of the original facebook "idea" founders to Stephen MR Covey, an award winning author of self help books.
My favorite speaker was Mr. Chris Voss, a former high profile FBI negotiator - talk about captivating! The three day event focused on how to develop trust in your business relationships and become a better negotiator. There was about 15 speakers and we received a lot of information from how to read peoples emotions to how the definition of a lie varies from one culture to another.

It was refreshing to be surrounded by Ivy League educated people for three whole days.  It made me want to continue to be reach beyond my comfort zone. There is definitely a difference between talking to someone from the Mommy and Me group about what canned goods are on sale at Walmart to having a lunch conversation with a professor who teaches at Georgetown and is a retired veteran of the FBI who has negotiated hostage cases in the Middle East. 

(Just a slight difference....Actually I only went to one Mom's group and decided it was not the right fit when the hostess laid out a giant blue plastic tarp on the nasty shag carpet on her living floor to eat homemade Chili and the conversation centered around breast feeding..unfortunately I could not relate to the women in the group and the conversation was not interesting for me at that time..or ever) Insert sarcasm here.

One of my favorite speakers was Hajj Flemings #Hajjflemings, a branding professional and keynote speaker from Detroit that spoke about brand development and trust. One inspirational thing that he said that stayed with me was that people don't value stuff that is free. In other words, don't sell yourself short. If you have a skill or knowledge to offer the world, don't offer it for free. Can we have an Amen?

Overall, I was pleased with the amount of knowledge that I learned that I can apply to negotiating in my freelance and consulting business as well as how to read people. In the future, I hope to surround myself with more intellectual people, they don't have to be Harvard educated-I have been inspired to continue to learn and expand my knowledge. If you read my blog you may recall it was about a month ago that a local handbag company offered me a close to minimum wage job after several interviews because I was a female/wife/mother. (there is nothing wrong with sitting in a cubicle and working for minimum wage for a chauvinist but that is just not my goal in life) Fast forward one month later and I am networking with some of the most iconic leaders of our time. I think its important to go where you are appreciated and to value yourself.. if you don't value yourself, who will?

I am not that good with words today...but I am so glad I attended this event! I have never been much of a workshop type of person but this was well worth the effort! I encourage all women (and men) to never settle and continue to push yourself out of your comfort zone both professionally and personally.

Never stop learning. You will be surprised that life has so much more to offer beyond what is on sale at Wal-Mart and how to mop your floor. (insert sarcasm here-but you know what I mean)

Ciao,

Tara Sauvage
Pig Farmers Daughter
Warden, Washington

P.S. My first job was cleaning pig pens for $3 or was it $4 an hour? Good times!





Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Fashion Accessories Lead Time

New "Marco" bag by Rocco & Dante handbags.

We Don't Exist to Please People