Human Moves Business Moves

RTFA - Read the F!*!*!*!*! Agreement

There is a saying among geeks - RTFM, or Read the F!*!*!*!*! Manual. An instruction invariably aimed at non-geeks, because no self respecting geek would ever deign to read a manual. Working it out by trial and error is the geekly way.

Legal contracts are even duller than user manuals. Recently, I signed up with a widget publisher for this blog. They provide adverts; I earn paltry sums if you click on the adverts. On the sign-up page there was a link to their user agreement, but the link was broken. I emailed their support desk and they came back with an apology and assurance that the link was now fixed. They also said that I was the only user ever to have queried it, so presumably the only user ever to have read the legal agreement. Think about that for a moment - presumably hundreds of people have entered into an agreement that they have not even looked at. They could owe the company millions of dollars. The agreement could say that the fee for using the widget is the deeds to the user's home.

Some time ago I read about a couple who bought a house from a lawyer. The lawyer offered to act as their representative in the transaction to save them money. I assume this is illegal now as it creates a conflict of interest, but it evidently was not then. The lawyer wrote a clause into the contract that said he could buy the house back for the same price as he had sold it to them any time he pleased. Twenty years later he did. Mr and Mrs Devo, who had not bothered to read the agreement, lost their house and twenty years worth of capital gains. The court supported the lawyer.

Take my advice. RTFA - Read the F!*!*!*!*! Agreement. Even if you are a geek.

Michael Alec Bryant
26th May 2007

Negotiation - Top 10 Tips

Ten tips for anyone who ever has to negotiate anything. That means all of us.

1. Practise negotiating. Learn from children - they compensate for their powerless state by honing their negotiation skills.
2. Practise your negotiation skills every time you buy something. You will never get a discount if you don't ask. You will nearly always get a discount if you do. Make it your mission never to pay the asking price.
3. Plan important negotiations as you would plan a battle. Choose the time and place, choose your allies, plan your opening, plan your end game. Go in armed with the facts and knowing what you want to achieve.
4. Make a list of your "Yields" and "Shields".
5. "Shields" are things you won't give up during the negotiation. For example, if you're selling a house, set your minimum selling price and don't be persuaded to change your decision in the heat of the moment. You advertised the house at £200k but your shield price is £180k and you won't accept less. You shield it at all costs.
6. "Yields" are concessions you are prepared to make during the negotiation. For example, you may be prepared to include the carpets in any deal to sell your house.
7. Never yield anything unless the person you are negotiating with also yields something.  Give nothing away for free. If you are a seller and your buyer wants a 2% discount, you can agree if it's on your yield list, but get something back. For example, you could agree so long as your buyer agrees to pay cash in advance.
8. Try to find out what is on your opponent's Yield/Shield list. Unguarded comments and body language can give away plenty if you pay attention. 
9. Raise the bar. Ask for the earth and you won't get it, but you'll get more than  someone who asks for nothing. Ask for a 50% discount then settle at 10%. If you start at 10% you'll settle at less.
10. Have fun. Business is a game and negotiation is a key business skill.

The author gratefully acknowledges the negotiation skills training he received from Bill Garcia.

See www.negotiationtraining.com for details of Bill's organisation.

Michael Alec Bryant
21st May 2007