Month: October 2016

Negotiations: Why do Americans struggle to negotiate?

Negotiations: Why do Americans struggle to negotiate?

Negotiation is a skill.  You can learn it.  A few negotiation skills can help us in all aspects of our lives.

In some countries, people regularly negotiate retail prices.  Yet in America, many people are frightened of the idea of asking for people to negotiate with them over a price.

If you have been a tourist in Mexico, you have probably had firsthand experience in negotiating prices.  Shop owners will gladly to let you pay the marked retail-price.  However, many merchants in Mexico are open and apparently expecting to negotiate a price.

In the United States, our prosperity and our retail culture diminish our negotiation skills.  Most shoppers are not going to negotiate pennies, nickels, and dimes for individual products.  It’s just not worth their time.  Most retailers are not going to negotiate pennies, nickels, and dimes for individual products either.  It is, in most cases, not necessary based on their business model.

The result is that in our culture, consumer skills of presentation and negotiation atrophy.

Sometimes, all you have to do is ask.

However, shrewd shoppers operate counter to our culture.  They often negotiate the price of mismarked advertised prices.  They also negotiate with retailers to match the prices of other retailers offer.

Retailers want your business.  They especially want your business if you are a local regular customer.

I am one of those rare Tab Cola drinkers.  Coca Cola makes Tab Cola.  The product is such a slow seller that most retailers carry it only on customer request.

The local Coca Cola bottling company sold twelve packs of Coca Cola product in every brand except for Tab Cola.  They shipped Tab Cola in six packs only.  Because of the packaging, the Tab Cola cost almost twice what other colas cost.

Since I regularly bought Tab Colas, I worked out a deal with the local Coca Cola bottling company and a local supermarket chain that enabled me to buy two six packs of Tab Cola for the same price of a twelve pack of the other Coca Cola products.

I got what I thought was a fair deal.  By solving a customer problem, the bottling company generated goodwill with the local retailer.  The retailer won, because Coca Cola worked with them to compensate for the cost difference.

The negotiation took a little bit of time, but I buy the product regularly.  It was worth the time to work out the deal.

Successful People Turn Bad Days into Great Days!

Successful People Turn Bad Days into Great Days!

“It’s not what happens to us, but our response to what happens to us that hurts us.” The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People by Stephen R. Covey

When I am having a bad day, I can strain to push myself through the day.  Ruminating, sulking, and whining are great ways to stay stuck in a bad day.

On the other hand, I can restart my day anytime.

Making Little Adjustments

Start over with a little grooming.  

Splashing a little water on my face is refreshing.  I can dampen my comb and start with a fresh part in my hair, just as I do when I am beginning the day.

If I wore makeup, I could restart my day with a mini-makeover:  lips, eyes, cheeks.

I can refresh the way I am dressed.  I can tuck in my shirt just as I do when I first put on my shirt in the morning.

Practice affirmations.

I can at myself in the mirror and think, “Hey, you are terrific!”

Take breaks.

When I am hungry or tired, I may deal with situations poorly.  I can relax with quiet meditation to calm my mind and reset my disposition.

Adjust the schedule.

Sometimes I schedule too many things. On other days, too many new tasks arise.  I can restart my day with a new schedule.

If I am struggling with a task, I can break the task down into pieces.  I can look at the pieces or elements of the task and define my true goal for this task.  With this process, I better understand what I am doing and cut the number of false starts and revisions.

I can then schedule a completion date for that task.  I may find that I am dealing with a truly valuable task that will return greater rewards once I have stopped forcing my way through the task and have begun to work with a schedule of steps.

Take walks.

If I have enough time, I have a complete workout.  By exercising, I burn up that adrenaline that accumulates from the mental stresses of my workday.

Self-Confidence: Getting to ‘You Got This!’

Self-Confidence: Getting to “You Got This!”

The Power of Self-Confidence: Become Unstoppable, Irresistible, and Unafraid in Every Area of Your Life by Brian Tracy

Get up every day and tell yourself, “You got this!”

Never sell yourself short.  In order to lead, you need self-confidence.  You must believe in your own abilities.

Most people easily agree with certain principles.  I am not a mathematician.   We can all easily agree on that point.

However, mathematics gives us a simple example of this point.  I will not frighten or bore you with complicated math problems.  If you are a mathematician, I will try not to annoy you.

But to make mathematics work, we have to start with some assumptions.  Likewise, to make self-confidence work, we must start with some assumptions.

Mathematicians start by agreeing that the number on one side of an equal sign is the same as the number on the other side of the equal sign:

1 =1

Simple enough.

The second thing that mathematicians agree on is never to divide by zero.  There are a number of explanations of the problems of dividing by zero.

The real fact is that we cannot make mathematics work unless we agree that 1 = 1 and that we will never, ever divide by zero.

Self-confidence begins with some basic principles about your own life.  These principles are not as obvious as 1 =1.

However, they can open a world for you as great as the world that mathematics has opened for you.

Fear is what people say behind your back.

Fear is not equal to respect.

Fear is what people say behind your back.

Respect is what people say to your face.  You can push people with fear.  You can fight people with fear.  But you can’t lead people with fear.  That takes respect.

Want Respect? Do These 8 Things.

1. Give Credit.

People gain respect when they give credit to the correct person.  Giving credit is a compliment with substance.

On the other hand, people who claim credit for the work of other people lose respect.   People who know that these people are undeserving of that credit will resent the dishonesty.

If you give credit, you will get respect and make your company stronger.

2. Admit Mistakes.
Everyone makes mistakes.  Successful people admit them and do not repeat them.  People will respect you if you correct your mistakes and move on.

Don’t make excuses for failing to do your work.  Be honest.  You just did not do the work.  You regret it.  When you admit your mistakes and not repeat them, you will get respect.

3. Do Your Job.

Get a copy of your job description.  Read it with your boss.  Discuss regularly with your boss what you are doing.  When you are uncertain about what you are doing, ask your boss for information.

Be conscientious about the way you do your job.

Your boss will respect you for knowing and doing what you are supposed to do.  Your co-workers will respect you.

4. Let Other People Do Their Job.

There are two parts to letting people do their job.

First, do not do let people take advantage of you.  Being a team player and helping other people occasionally is one thing.  Having people use you to do their work is not the way to get respect at work.

Second, do not interfere with other people by meddling in their job.  People do not always want your advice.  People certainly do not want you to do their job and take credit for what their job.

By respecting the job of other people, you will get respect.

Simple Steps for a Better You.

5. Lighten Up.

If you don’t take yourself too seriously, people will respect you more.  Your daily routine is a marathon, not a sprint.  If you come to work every day and load the workplace with pressure, you will create tension.

Be sincere.  Work hard.  Be straightforward with your supervisors, co-workers, and people you manage.  Take your work seriously.  However, don’t take everything so seriously that you can’t accept mistakes and adjustments in the daily routine.

People will enjoy working with you and you will get respect.

6. Keep Your Word.

Honor your commitments.  If you know that you can’t do something or that you will not do something, be honest about it.  Don’t make a commitment to do things that you can’t or will not do.  Keeping your word is basic to getting respect.

7. Be Punctual.

People will quickly get weary of dealing with you if you are late all the time.  Make your appointments on time.  Complete your work on time.

You will get respect when people know they can trust you to complete your work on time.

8. Avoid Gossip and Confidences

A quick way to ruin relationships is to gossip.  Avoid people who gossip.  The only people who respect people who gossip are other people who gossip.

Keep confidences.  When someone tells you something personal or private, keep it to yourself.  Even if you do not make a commitment to keep the information private, respect the trust that people have given you. People do not respect people who break their confidences.

You will get respect as a person who is trustworthy.

The Simple Way to Write a Killer Resume

The Simple Way to Write a Killer Resume

“On the average, five times as many people read the headlines as read the body copy.  It follows that, unless your headline sells your product, you have wasted 90 percent of your money.” David Ogilvy, Confessions of an Advertising Man

During the three decades I worked as a recruiter, I scanned thousands of resumes.  I say scanned, because I spent less than ten seconds looking at most of these resumes.

Hiring managers and recruiters don’t actually read most resumes.  Resumes must grab the reader’s attention.  They must compel the reader to read them.

If they don’t, hiring managers and recruiters just don’t read them, and, if it’s your resume, you don’t get an interview.

I contracted with over a hundred hiring companies, and I received positive and negative feedback on resumes.  Here are three things I learned.

Accomplishments

State what you did as accomplishments.  For example, don’t simply say that you did A, B, and C.  Say that you accomplished #1, #2, and #3 by doing A, B, and C.  You will increase the impact of your resume and separate yourself from other people who just list job titles.

Simple Format

Layout the resume in a simple format with the most important information at the top of the resume.

Keywords

Use keywords. These are words that will show up in a resume search.  These words are job titles, names of companies and products, names of skills, names of schools, certificates, degrees, etc.

Here is a simple format.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Your name
Street address
City, State Zip
Home phone
Cell phone
Email address

OBJECTIVE AND SUMMARY
Stating an objective or a giving a summary at the beginning of the resume is common practice.  Stating an objective or providing a summary is optional.

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY 
There is no sentence structure in a resume.  The wording in a resume is simply a series of statements of actions and accomplishments.

For example, this is a sentence: I doubled the company’s sales in 6 months.
This is resume wording: Doubled company’s sales in 6 months.

The history in a resume is just a list that includes employment periods, performance, skills, responsibilities, accomplishments, and education.

(Most recent job first)
Company Name; company Location, From –to
Most recent title, Location, From – to

Use bullet format.
•        List things you have accomplished.  Do not waste space on your just giving a job description.  List things that showed that you made a difference in the positions you held.
•        Use facts—for example, exceeded assigned sales goal by 30%, reduced costs, promoted people, saved time, increased productivity, etc.
•        Employers and recruiters search their databases for specific words, so list successes with specific industry words or functions.  Include the real name of your product categories, product names, sales accounts, functions (e.g., Profit & Loss, Market Research or Software Names, New Product Development, Market Insights, Innovation), etc.

Next List Previous Titles at this company and again list successes and accomplishments in bullet format.

Then include Previous Companies going back in time from most recent.

EDUCATION
Normally, education goes at the bottom of the resume.  People who have recently received an educational degree or credential that alters their employability might consider putting education at the top of the resume.

Other items that might go at the bottom of the resume are awards, extra skills, volunteer work, or perhaps some relevant college employment.

How to Shorten Your Resume for Readability

Avoiding the following items might make the difference whether a hiring manager reads your resume.

Objective
Summary
Hobbies
References
References available on request
Compensation
Long paragraph formats
Long-winded discussions of core responsibilities
Too many details on jobs with well-known functions
Details on jobs that date back in time
Paragraph formatting
Third person reference

More Career Articles
Building Professional Relationships Everywhere
Are you a card collector?
Resumes for Managers
Resumes for Recent College Graduates

Preparation: The Key to Self-confidence

Preparation: The Key to Self-confidence

“One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” Arthur Ashe

An effective way to prepare for anything is to create an outline of the things you want to do, that is, an agenda.

Below is an interview agenda you can use as a format for any meeting.  I worked with one of my daughters to help prepare this agenda for an interview.  She got the job.

The Agenda

Why I am interested in working for your company?

  1. The reputation of the company as a customer-based marketer
  2. The long history of success of your company
  3. The opportunity to work in an environment that enables me to use the promotional and marketing tools I have developed for my career
  4. The commitment to respecting and honoring all employees for their service
  5. The opportunity to work in the field of my choice: sports promotion and marketing

What I bring to your company

  1. Team skills with work with other people in all departments
  2. Experience in creating promotional marketing programs to target community customers
  3. A successful history of developing marketing strategies that include customer service, pricing, product choice, graphic design, and product presentation at retail and in the media

My thoughts on marketing and sales promotion

  1. Does it present value to the customer?
  2. Does it create the correct brand image?
  3. Does it reach your target customer base?
  4. Does it make a buyer out of your customer?
  5. Does it create repeat customers?

Ways that I can make sure that you reach your goals.

  1. Identify the target customer
  2. Identify the message that will reach and draw that customer
  3. Create a consistent brand image that will build customer loyalty

Create your own agenda.  Prepare for any meeting or activity with research and outline your research results in an agenda.  You will build your self-confidence and increase your control over your meetings and activities.

3 Times When You Should Never Take Advice

3 Times When You Should Never Take Advice

When it comes to making good decisions, knowing when to take advice and when not to take advice can make all the difference in the world.

The Best Intentions

Do you know people who are more than ready to give you advice? They hear about things going on in your life. Next, these people step in with their advice about what you need to do.

Often what these people have to say is purely their feelings about your experience. With the best intentions, they tell you how to solve a problem they have never had or even heard of before you discussed your problem.

The Question is “Why”

I had a job applicant tell me that he did not get a job, because, during an interview, he discussed some of his mistakes at his last job.  I asked him why he would talk about those things.  I could not see how the information benefited the prospective employer.  The person had learned from the mistakes and did not plan to repeat those mistakes.

He told me that he had advice to be completely open and honest about his life when interviewing for a job.

It is commendable to be honest.  However, a job interview is not a confessional or a therapy session.  People fail interviews when they feed hiring managers irrelevant and negative personal information.

When You Have Time to Dig Deeper for the Facts

Certainly, sometimes taking advice is necessary.  A patient in a desperate health condition may not have time to get a second opinion.  However, patients with serious, protracted health conditions can benefit from taking the time to see a second or maybe or their or fourth doctor to find a solution to their problems.  I have benefited from seeing more than one doctor about my health.

When I have the time to get the facts from more than one professional over an important issue, I take advantage of that opportunity.

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