C-Suite Network™

Menu
Search
Close this search box.

Day: April 18, 2018

Categories
Best Practices Growth Management Personal Development Women In Business

Our Addiction to Social Media

Apps and social media are stealing our attention. We have become obsessed with likes, retweets, and finding the perfect gif response to post.

We miss the amazing play or moment at the concert because we are updating our Instagram.

We miss the bus because we are enthralled with the latest video on one of our YouTube subscriptions.

We miss our floor on the elevator because we were reading Twitter. We miss the green light because we are checking Facebook.

The CEO of a technology and data company recently shared with me his frustration about one of his senior leaders who appeared to be addicted to Candy Crush. In every spare moment, his director was online and had to be counseled twice in one week. The leader tried to explain it was his form of relaxation but after much questioning, he reluctantly admitted that his workload had fallen behind, he had emails in his inbox that hadn’t been answered for five days, and he was two weeks behind in developing a database for a client. Remember, this is a smart, functioning adult.

Maybe you don’t play Candy Crush but you feel a need to check every notification of a new email, text, tweet, or post on Facebook or LinkedIn, or maybe you have created Pinterest boards to plan your perfectly designed office or maybe you monitor every like you get on Instagram?

Gut check time: How much of your attention is being stolen by apps and social media?

Do we really have to include in our employee policies that people can’t play Candy Crush or check social media at work? Possibly. Some of our obsession is driven by habit and some of it by boredom. And it could be that the voyeuristic interest in other people’s lives is more exciting than whatever work is in front of us.

Regardless, the addiction is real. Technology, social media companies, and app development companies are competing for our attention and intentionally feed our addictions in hopes we will spend more time on their systems, enveloped by their tools. Either way, it demands are decaying our ability to truly connect in a meaningful way with others that is mindful, intentional, and purposeful.

I doubt anyone on their deathbed will say “I wish I’d posted one more tweet or picture.” Instead, I bet they’re likely to say “I wish I’d paid more attention to the people I was with rather than those on social media.”

Categories
Best Practices Body Language Culture Entrepreneurship Human Resources Management Marketing Negotiations Sales Skills Women In Business

How To Address Objections In A Negotiation

“Objections are used in an attempt to see what one can obtain. Before addressing objections know what you want and what you’re willing to forgo to acquire what you need.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert

I’ve addressed hundreds of thousands of objections over the course of my negotiation career. Objections should be addressed with the mindset of information gathered about the party with whom you’re negotiating; that includes silent partners that are not at the negotiation table, foils that might be aligned with your negotiation opponent to perform nefarious functions, the demeanor of the negotiator(s), and the culture of the negotiator’s organization. Such insights, along with reading one’s body language, will lend credence to the validity and viability of the person making objections during a negotiation. That, in turn, will allow you to discern how important an objection is, versus it being a possible ploy, created to distract you from something that is more beneficial to your position.

Handling Objections:

Before addressing objections, always be aware of the attempts of others on the opposing negotiator’s team to hype them; remember, these attempts could stem from people that are not at the negotiation table. Hyping objections can be in the form of giving them the appearance of being more valuable or dire than they are, for the purpose of gaining insight into how you might react to such attempts. Keeping that in mind, follow the steps below when addressing objections in your negotiations.

1. When the first objection is posed, assess its veracity to determine if you should address it at all. If the other negotiator insists upon having it addressed, note his body language before proceeding to the next step. In particular, you should observe if he looks directly at you with a smile or scowl, if he looks through you as though he’s in a daze, or if he makes such a request in a timid manner. In all such cases, appraise the degree to which any of these gestures might be ploys.

a.) Looking directly at you is a sign that he’s focused. A smile can indicate that he wants to convey a friendly/casual perspective. A scowl may be an indication of a more serious projection and/or one to set the stage to take his request more seriously.

b.) Looking through you in a daze could imply that his mind is somewhere else and the fact that he’s testing you as a ploy.

c.) Making the request in a timid manner could belie the fact that he doesn’t possess a strong demeanor. He might also be examining you to see if you’ll attempt to take advantage of his docile demeanor.

2. Ask the other negotiator to cite all of his objections. Your goal is to get them out in the open. Do this by requesting what else he’s concerned about. If warranted, have him detail why he thinks his objections are valid. Observe hidden insights gleaned from his body language and nonverbal signals, as mentioned in step 1. By doing this, you’ll gain a sense of direction he has for the negotiation.

3. Once you’ve garnered enough insights about the purpose and value he has for citing his objections, have him prioritize them. Then, address one that’s lower on his priority list to see if that has more weight than disclosed. Couple this tactic with the outcome you seek for the negotiation. Continue this process to the successful conclusion of the negotiation.

In any negotiation, you should know what you’re dealing with before you attempt to deal with it. Such is the case when dealing with objections. Thus, by implementing the suggestions above, you’ll be better positioned to keep in check those objections intended to dissuade your attention from what’s more important. That, in turn, will allow you to be more laser focused on addressing the real objections that will impact the negotiation … and everything will be right with the world.

Remember, you’re always negotiating!

After reading this article, what are you thinking? I’d really like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

To receive Greg’s free 5-minute video on reading body language or to sign up for the “Negotiation Tip of the Week” and the “Sunday Negotiation Insight” click here http://www.themasternegotiator.com/greg-williams/

#HandlingObjections #negotiations #Negotiator #HowToNegotiateBetter #CSuite #TheMasterNegotiator #psychology #CombatDisinformation #hardpower #HowToHandleObjections

Categories
Best Practices Growth Management Personal Development Technology

What Cybersecurity Professionals Forget to Tell You

As a cybersecurity consultant and advisor, I often forget that my clients and those of you who are out there running your businesses don’t think about cybersecurity the way I do and that’s fair I don’t think about your industry the way you probably do. We all have our “thing” that we do really well and we forget that others don’t see our “thing” the same way.

Often cybersecurity professionals use FUD….Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt to explain why cybersecurity is important and tactics such as listing lots of statistics on all the breaches, after which they will conclude, “It’s not ifyou’re breached, but when”, and make you wonder whether you’ve done enough.

What we have forgotten to tell you is that cybersecurity is actually a strategy you can use as a competitive advantage within your industry. It is part of running a successful and influential business. By implementing cybersecurity in a strategic way, you can reduce risks that can cost you more later, become more competitive, and improve your bottom line.

Brand loyalty is not what it used to be (unless your Apple or Android where there’s a fight to watch between loyalists). Consumers want to do business with those who want what is best for them and they will leave very quickly if they feel you don’t care about them. They want you to protect them and be willing and able to protect their information. In the case of many new products consumers need you to protect their physical well-being and in some cases their lives. Whether your product can track their location, their information, their privacy, or physically harm them if not developed correctly, your customers need your help. The more you can show you are doing the right things the more loyal your customers will be.

Maybe you don’t sell to consumers and are not concerned about brand loyalty from that perspective. If instead you sell a service to other businesses or to the government, cybersecurity may be the competitive advantage you are looking for. Many industries and any government contract will require their business partners, vendors, and service providers have a cybersecurity program to protect connections and data. If a potential business customer comes to you with a contract that would be great for your bottom line and says “we can do business with you if you can provide information and attestation regarding these 200 security questions”, I guarantee it will be much more fun if you can easily say yes and get that business. I constantly recommend to my clients when they are on the search for new business partners and vendors to have a due diligence process and only contract with those who can show they have implemented compliance and/or security programs. It is much easier to put the program in place before the contract shows up.

Other benefits include teaching your employees good security practices at work, which not only protects your organization, but also helps them stay safe at home too. When you care about your employees and teach them how to protect themselves you can add a level of employee loyalty. Not to mention it’s also being a great corporate citizen for your community.

If customer loyalty, new contracts, and being a great corporate citizen doesn’t resonate with you, then maybe improved stakeholder confidence is what you’re looking for. I’m not a stock market wiz, but last time I checked stock price valuation has a lot to do with confidence and when your customers and employees are confident in your organization and product, your stock price should reflect this.

That was the short discussion I wanted to have when I realized that we have forgotten to share all the good reasons to implement cybersecurity.

If you want to continue the conversation or have specific cybersecurity questions reach out via email to sharon@c-suiteresults.com. I’m happy to discuss stagey and options for improving your cybersecurity posture.