Everyday we as individuals negotiate, whether it’s in business or our personal life. From the moment we crawl out of bed in the morning, we decide and determine our attitude, attire, what we will eat for breakfast, and what we need to accomplish that day. Because of this, one of your biggest negotiation opponents is yourself. Learning to use negotiation skills to their full potential can help us progress in our daily lives and can often result in many life changing choices.
I had the opportunity to interview a young professional, David Malley in the sales field of business. His current position is Sports Administrator and Sales Representative for the Walt Disney World Company. During our interview, he discussed several interesting topics including the importance of negotiating skills and how to implement them with a potential client to make them a permanent client.
I asked David how he determines his approach to a potential client. He thought for a moment and then drew an outline of a square and divided it into four boxes. He proceeded to explain that Disney sorts clients into four categories, which consist of: Analytical, Driver, Amiable, and Expressive. From those categories he labels the potential client and mirrors their attributes, making communication with the client easier. From here he uses the company’s affiliations to help gain power and control of the negotiation. If a relationship with the company becomes more of a need than a want, the client is more likely to become involved with the company. This provides the company with leverage. If you wish to see more on these four concepts David discussed, please visit their website here.
David went on to explain that working for such a big company has taught him his strengths and weaknesses, especially within his negotiations. It has also given him key concepts to help strengthen his own approaches. He was happy to encourage any young professional to try and gain experiences through internships before they graduate making them more successful with their skills. If you are interested in Disney internships please visit their website at this link.
