HOW OTHER CULTURES NEGOTIATE Do all cultures negotiate in the same fashion as we do? Who has been to Mexico? Does everything have a price, or do you negotiate the price? How about Turkey? If you offer to buy something at a bazaar and pay the first price given, the vendor may be insulted. Negotiation is expected, it is part of the experience, it is enjoyable and fun, and it is a social interaction. How about in the United States? Do we negotiate everything? No. We are a fixed price culture. We are comfortable with that. We seem only to negotiate at the extremes. We negotiate at a garage sale over small amounts of money for junk that the other person no longer wants, but even then, many people are still uncomfortable with this negotiation. When we purchase a big-ticket item, a car or a house, we negotiate because it is expected of us. But we never seem to negotiate anything in between these extremes. So how good are we at negotiation? If you play golf once a year, how good are you at golf? Practice, Practice, Practice. THE STORY OF THE VISITOR FROM SAUDI ARABIA Like any skill, negotiation takes practice. Practice makes us comfortable with negotiation. Think for a moment: How do you feel when you negotiate? Are you comfortable? Do you enjoy the experience? Do you feel skilled, or are you afraid to negotiate because you are afraid of losing or it might be embarrassing? Since negotiating is a daily experience for many other cultures, it follows that we can learn from other countries and cultures. We may want to consider importing the traditions and practices of these other cultures and make them our own. Let’s consider some of the things other cultures do and see if we want to try and blend those traits into our negotiation skills. Even if you decide not to negotiate like these other cultures, at least you will come away with an understanding of how they negotiate, and you will have a comfort level in understanding the process.
Print date 7/10/2020
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