In this article from the Program on Negotiation from the Harvard Law School blog by Katie Shonk, she summarizes four key points from Northwestern University professor Leigh L.

Asking this differently… are you a good driver?  Everyone believes they are a good driver, it’s the other drivers that have concerns.  I have found that asking others if they are good negotiators, the typical response is that they believe they are good negotiators or they would not have gotten to where they are.  The same concept holds.  In this blog I want to share some thoughts to make you a

In my book, The Servant Manager, 203 tips from the best places to work in America, I offer a chapter with 5 tips on How to Manage in a Crises Environment.  However I was struck at the clear concise commentary offered by the free

Last week I shared on my blog “Lessons Learned from Recent Negotiations with the IRS on Examination”.    This was well received.  Since then I have received a host of emails and comments from various sources.  On my listing of over 4,200 contacts there are over 50 IRS employees.  Several IRS employees and

In this article from the Accounting Web the IRS Commissioner, John Koskinen, is letting Congress and us as taxpayers know tha

For those that follow this blog or subscribe to my monthly newsletter (4,200), you know that I offer information related to conflict resolution, neuroscience and leadership, and tax issues of interest.  Over the last 9 months I have been involved with several cases with the IRS that have ended in success and I want

Over the course of the last few weeks I have been introduced to a think tank in Washington DC that addresses major policy issues looking at long term relationships to address some of the most complex issues of our time.  This group is nonpartisan.  The group is the Convergence Center for Policy Resolution.  It was my pleasure to speak with Robert

The election is over.   About half of the country is depressed and half is feeling pretty good.  Among friends, relatives and work associates there can be a host of emotions right now.   Psychologically this can be very draining.  You or others may need some assistance.

During negotiations often we assume the other party has the same or similar interests, intentions and desires that we do.   We make assumptions about the priorities of importance of issues that can have a significant impact on negotiating tradeoffs to reach a negotiated settlement.  Using stereotypes we prejudice outcomes and reduce the probabilities unnecessarily.  Those that view negotiations

Many people enter into negotiations with expectations. Often times a natural initial tendency is to be position based with a view that the world is clearly black and white. That type of approach typically leads one to the conclusion that I am right with my position.  Expectations are biased as a result of initial perceptions.