5 ms·

Coming from the Middle East, it's obvious to me that Americans overestimate the difficulty and importance of negotiation, and this is because they never negotia

Coming from the Middle East, it's obvious to me that Americans overestimate the difficulty and importance of negotiation, and this is because they never negotiate outside of a business context. The responsibility of the negotiator is to evaluate the available offers and be able to come up with constructive counteroffers. The only way you get screwed is if you act rashly or irrationally. In other words, you're saying that CEOs get astronomical compensation because they can be relied on not to act in gross negligence.

dredmorbius 10y ago
How does a middle eastern background help here?
- jzwinck 10y ago
  In some places you can negotiate for a sack of rice. A television. A taxi ride. A dress. When you live in such places you become used to the ebb and flow of negotiating, the give and take. If the only time you negotiate anything, it's worth millions, you might not be well practiced.
  - dredmorbius 10y ago
    You've explained practice as a component, but not what that yields. What are the lessons of haggling, then?
    - puranjay 10y ago
      If you haggle on an everyday basis, you eventually start trying out different strategies, from lowballing to starting with a high offer to anchoring. Dont know how effectivr that would be in an 8 figure deal, but I reckon the lessons are somewhat applicable
      - ghshephard 10y ago
        Jobs's skill in negotiating was such that there was a standing order at Sun that no contract could be finalized with Apple, While Steve Jobs physically present in the room. The objective was to allow his reality distortion field to dissipate, such that a more dispassionate assessment could be made. I'm wondering if that suggests that Steve didn't have a particularly good negotiating strategy, but simply a force of emotive presence. I guess that is actually a form of negotiating, but probably one that is difficult to teach others.
        allenbrunson 10y ago
        > Jobs's skill in negotiating was such that there was a standing order at Sun that no contract could be finalized with Apple, While Steve Jobs physically present in the room. wow. if true, that's the strongest evidence i've ever heard in favor of jobs' negotiating skills. have you got a source for that? not that i don't believe it, i'd just like to read more about it, in context.
        ghshephard 10y ago
        Here is one: https://books.google.com/books?id=m_B9vFa0H1AC&pg=PT34&lpg=PT34&dq=Sun+Contracts+signed+Steve+Jobs+Reality+Distortion&source=bl&ots=mdDFQq5SA4&sig=IkGE12Y0Pw8dqEfU-J6gtuppNrM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiU9sSvpuTNAhVJKWMKHUB_AxMQ6AEIJjAB#v=onepage&q=Sun%20Contracts%20signed%20Steve%20Jobs%20Reality%20Distortion&f=false https://books.google.com/books?id=m_B9vFa0H1AC&pg=PT34&lpg=P...
        allenbrunson 10y ago
        i just bought it. only four bucks for the kindle edition. here's a link, for anybody else who might be interested. https://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-1955-2011-Bloomberg-Businessweek-ebook/dp/B006C68A1W https://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-1955-2011-Bloomberg-Busine...
        dredmorbius 10y ago
        Thanks, fantastic cite.

dredmorbius 10y ago

How does a middle eastern background help here?

jzwinck 10y ago
In some places you can negotiate for a sack of rice. A television. A taxi ride. A dress. When you live in such places you become used to the ebb and flow of negotiating, the give and take. If the only time you negotiate anything, it's worth millions, you might not be well practiced.
- dredmorbius 10y ago
  You've explained practice as a component, but not what that yields. What are the lessons of haggling, then?
  - puranjay 10y ago
    If you haggle on an everyday basis, you eventually start trying out different strategies, from lowballing to starting with a high offer to anchoring. Dont know how effectivr that would be in an 8 figure deal, but I reckon the lessons are somewhat applicable
    - ghshephard 10y ago
      Jobs's skill in negotiating was such that there was a standing order at Sun that no contract could be finalized with Apple, While Steve Jobs physically present in the room. The objective was to allow his reality distortion field to dissipate, such that a more dispassionate assessment could be made. I'm wondering if that suggests that Steve didn't have a particularly good negotiating strategy, but simply a force of emotive presence. I guess that is actually a form of negotiating, but probably one that is difficult to teach others.
      - allenbrunson 10y ago
        > Jobs's skill in negotiating was such that there was a standing order at Sun that no contract could be finalized with Apple, While Steve Jobs physically present in the room. wow. if true, that's the strongest evidence i've ever heard in favor of jobs' negotiating skills. have you got a source for that? not that i don't believe it, i'd just like to read more about it, in context.
        ghshephard 10y ago
        Here is one: https://books.google.com/books?id=m_B9vFa0H1AC&pg=PT34&lpg=PT34&dq=Sun+Contracts+signed+Steve+Jobs+Reality+Distortion&source=bl&ots=mdDFQq5SA4&sig=IkGE12Y0Pw8dqEfU-J6gtuppNrM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiU9sSvpuTNAhVJKWMKHUB_AxMQ6AEIJjAB#v=onepage&q=Sun%20Contracts%20signed%20Steve%20Jobs%20Reality%20Distortion&f=false https://books.google.com/books?id=m_B9vFa0H1AC&pg=PT34&lpg=P...
        allenbrunson 10y ago
        i just bought it. only four bucks for the kindle edition. here's a link, for anybody else who might be interested. https://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-1955-2011-Bloomberg-Businessweek-ebook/dp/B006C68A1W https://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-1955-2011-Bloomberg-Busine...
        dredmorbius 10y ago
        Thanks, fantastic cite.