the art of negotiation…
September 21, 2010
I rarely write a post at night but while it was fresh on my mind I had to write about this great event I went to tonight for the launch of a book called Dare to Ask! The Woman’s Guidebook to Successful Negotiation. It’s by Cait Clarke and she did an absolutely fabulous presentation tonight about how to “Become a Negotiating Diva in 27 Minutes.”
She basically gave some great ideas on how to have collaborative conversations in order to get what you want as woman and she dared us not to use the word negotiate but instead collaborative conversation. She also gave some great tips and best practices on hows to become empowered as a woman in the process.
Author Cait Clarke signing copies of her book "Dare to Ask"
Her book is described as the first ‘how to’ guide directed to the specific needs of women. It demonstrates how relationship building, empathy, intuition and social bonding—acts women do naturally—become powerful bargaining skills when you re-frame negotiation as ‘collaborative conversation.’
It was a great reception and it was a full house over at Affinity Lab on U Street for the event. There were a lot of great women in there from community groups such as SmartChicks and Fabulous Women’s Business Owners who were interested in gaining the edge in collaborative conversation.
Of course there were many great takeaways but I want you to buy the book (like I did) so these are my five bullets from the evening that I’ll share:
- Having “nice girl syndrome” in negotiation often inhibits us from getting what we deserve or want.
- Never say yes to the first offer.
- Everyone has legitimate needs and valid requests don’t be afraid to ask about what you want
- In negotiation do not speak unless you can improve the silence. Silence can be a weapon.
- Don’t take a no personally. Things will work out in the end and if it hasn’t worked out it must not be the end.
I think her book is definitely worth checking out and she did a really excellent presentation. She’s also looking for women’s groups, students, etc. to talk to about the power of collaborative conversation with women. So if you are interested contact her on her site.
For more information on the book visit her site http://womennegotiating.com
