Читать книгу The Obvious: Everything You Need to Know to Succeed - James Dale - Страница 17

The world has enough jerks. They’re everywhere, especially in business. People who think being tough makes you a better boss. Or who refuse to give a good deal because it might show weakness. Or who can’t compromise. People who yell, demand, intimidate.

Let’s say being a jerk and being nice were equally effective. Which would you rather think of yourself as? Which would you like your children to think of you as? If it were a toss up for efficacy, you’d be nice. But here’s a surprise: Being nice can actually be more effective than being a jerk.

Ron Shapiro is a lawyer/sports agent. Nobody, it would seem, needs to be tougher or more demanding than a sports agent. But Shapiro and his partner, Mark Jankowski, practice, and conduct seminars, in a negotiation philosophy called The Power of Nice. The basic premise is: The best way to get what you want is to help the other person get what he or she wants. Shapiro took that approach to the bargaining table to cut deals for Hall of Fame ballplayers Jim Palmer, Brooks Robinson, Eddie Murray, Kirby Puckett, and (future Hall of Famer) Cal Ripken, Jr., to settle a symphony orchestra strike, to intercede during the baseball shutdown of 1994–1995, and to help the Major League umpires work out their differences with the team owners in 1999–2000. If an agent can be nice – and succeed – so can you.