#01-089: The Fine Art of Negotiation

A green light means "GO!"
(Wikipedia)

---

Note: A paragraph on negotiation uses slang terms that can help you understand the world of business. Pick up ten more terms in this lesson.

---

Get Ready: Which do you think is the better result of a negotiation: win-win, or win-lose? In other words, do you think it's best if both sides get what they want? Try to think of some examples.

---

Read this a paragraph on the "Fine Art of Negotiation." Then do the Practice; check your Answers in the first comment below; and then read the Explanations.

Negotiation is an art. There's no sure-fire way to achieve the payoff you expect without a lot of arm-twisting. You may start with a wish list and then discover there's no way to give everyone a fair shake. To turn it from a no-win to a win-win situation and get the other party to green-light the deal, you may have to make a guesstimate and then watch for a tip-off that the other party is caving in. If you're successful you'll end up on easy street.

--------

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negotiation

---

Practice: Match the term to its definition below:

1. arm-twisting
2. caving in
3. easy street
4. fair shake
5. green light
6. guesstimate
7. no-win
8. payoff
9. sure-fire
10. tip-off
11. win-win
12. wish list

1. equal treatment, without cheating
2. to approve (can also be a noun)
3. the final (positive) result
4. all the things one wants
5. a situation in which everybody is happy
6. something that reveals what's truly happening
7. certain; absolute
8. giving up; changing one's mind
9. an approximate price or amount 
10. forcing someone
11. a condition of wealth, success, or comfort
12. a situation where everybody is unhappy

Answers are in the first comment below.

---

Explanations of the Answers: After you check your answers in the first comment below, read on for more information on the slang terms used.

• arm-twisting: forcing someone. Literally, this is a technique playground bullies use to get what they want. Figuratively, it might mean a kind of unfair pressure on someone to do something.
• caving in: giving up; changing one's mind. "Don't cave in: stand your ground."
• easy street: a condition of wealth, success, or comfort. To "be on easy street" means to be in that condition.
• fair shake: an even chance; a lack of cheating. This may refer to playing dice: "Don't cheat; give the dice a fair shake."
• green light: As a verb, this means "to approve." It can also be a noun, as in "to give a green light to something." This can also be called "the go-ahead": "to give the go-ahead to something..."
• guesstimate: This coined word mixes "guess" with "estimate." It means the same as both of these. So to "make a guesstimate" is the same as to "make a guess" or to "make an estimate."
• no-win: Clearly, a no-win situation is one in which no one wins. This would be a very bad conclusion to a negotiation.
• payoff: the (usually positive) final result. "A high mark was the payoff for all his hard study."
• sure-fire: certain; absolute. "There is no sure-fire way to know the winner before a horse race."
• tip-off: Something that reveals the truth of what's happening. "The way his voice shook was a tip-off that he was nervous."
• win-win: Just the opposite of "no-win., this is a situation where everybody wins. In between no-win and win-win is win-lose, where one side wins and the other loses; this isn't a good outcome for a negotiation, either.
• wish list: The list of things you wish for (or want). The items on the list might also be referred to as "talking points."

---

Submitted to the Shenzhen Daily for March 25, 2008

This lesson received 170 visits on my old site between March, 2012, and July, 2021.