Thoughts and Insights by Michael Gregory

How Do You Negotiate Closure in a Negotiation?

Closure is not an add on at the end.

Want to be an outstanding communicator? Close your mouth.

It sounds to easy, but really the best communicators know when to keep their mouths shut and really listen. Rather than trying to promote themselves, an idea or a position, they focus on truly trying to understand. Sometimes we simply need to be heard. Often times that is the best solution to simply listen to the other party and help them to sort out their solution.

This is how to improve your day based on 10 tips from neuroscience

Do you want to feel better, be more productive and have more fun?  Researching some recent articles and blogs I wanted to share some great ideas with you. Here is a list of ten items of relatively simple activities that any of us could apply to improve our day. See if any of these may work for you. You don’t have to take on the entire list. See if one or two might work for you.  If any of these work for you simply write them down and test them out as action item(s) to improve your day.

This is how your bias impacts negotiations and conflict resolution

Cognitive bias is defined as “a systemic error in thinking that impacts one’s choices and judgments”. We are all shaped by our experiences good and bad. We learn from these experiences. However, we can also reinforce, learn from others, and teach ourselves things that are not true. When that happens, our thinking is impaired. This article focuses on how cognitive bias negatively impacts serious negotiations and conflict resolution. The article also offers what we can do about it.

Overcome potential conflicts before the next economic downturn by building collaborative relationships now

The Harvard Business Review (HBR) is suggesting now is the time to plan for the next economic downturn. Leading economic indicators are pointing downward. When an economic downturn takes place and you are in the thick of it, you will need to focus on tactics and day to day operations.  Now is the time to plan, be proactive and collaborate with key stakeholders.

This is how to build trust in a negotiation

Trust is a two-way street. Trust can be built and trust can be earned. This article focuses on how you can both build trust and earn trust in a negotiation.

Educate judiciously to take advantage of The Collaboration Effect

The Collaboration Effect TM enhances relationships, resources and revenues. It incorporates connecting relationships, actively listening, judiciously educating and negotiating closure.This article focuses on judiciously educating.

What should you look for in a negotiation coach?

All too often we try to do things by ourselves. The old axiom on the American way is that “we should pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps”. Well that may work well with boots, but it takes a village to enhance skills. This is especially true when it comes to soft skills, or what I refer to as the critical skills.

Collaboration is key to a great agreement

This is common sense, but not everyone has the same amount of common sense.  At the end of this article the Program on Negotiation at the Harvard Law School provides additional commentary on this topic.  What is a great agreement?  Is that one when you win as much as you can?  It can be argued that instead, a great agreement is when both parties mutually create a much better agreement than either would have crafted by themselves.  Think about having a larger pie may be the better outcome for you and the other party than simply having a larger piece or even the entire smaller pie. This concept has been proven time and time again to be the best approach to a truly great agreement.

Here are the last four of seven ways to be more persuasive based on neuroscience

The first three ways to be more persuasive base on neuroscience were presented in this blog on November 19, 2018. Given the length of the blog here are the last four for closure. Enjoy! What are the influences that persuade us to change are minds?  Tali Sharot is the author of a new book entitled The Influential Mind: What the Brain Reveals About Our Power to Change Others that offers some great ideas.  She suggests seven key thoughts on this topic that I found very insightful that I thought you may find interesting too.  Here are the last four: