I was fortunate to be selected to participate in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business program a half dozen years ago. The program is a free condensed version of a MBA program, sponsored by Goldman Sachs. It is intended to have you come out of the program with a detailed business plan to grow your business. Their tag line is to make Small (business) – BIG. Their intent is to help entrepreneurs create jobs and economic opportunity by providing access to education, capital and support services. I was part of Cohort 16 in Philadelphia. There were a number of subject matter experts brought in to lecture. One of the speakers was Mori Taheripour. Her topic was negotiations. She was THE BEST!
Mori Taheripour is a faculty member in the Legal Studies and Business Ethics Department at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where she teaches Negotiations and Dispute Resolution in the Undergraduate, MBA and Executive Education programs. She is also an accomplished author of “Bring Yourself.” The author spent the past 15 years of her career advising top leaders, corporations, and entrepreneurs on how to negotiate.
I am currently listening to her audio book – Bring Yourself. The book provides a number of insights to confidently and authentically negotiate by understanding your value and embracing the opportunity to communicate your personal story. I always thought that negotiation was to be tough, even mean. A win-lose scenario. I am a win-win type of person. I thought win-win in negotiations was more like surrendering. In my younger days I was uncomfortable negotiating. Mori has provided me the confidence to “bring yourself” to negotiations. She made me aware that both sides can win in a negotiation, without surrendering to the other. She shared that you could do this by being confidently authentic. If you are uncomfortable in negotiating, this book is a must read. Thanks Mori!