Evaluate the US Debt Limit Negotiations

Here are my Seven Principles of Negotiation from my book, DECISION TIME! Better Decisions for a Better Life. After all the smoke clears in Washington, decide for yourself whether each side did a good job of handling the process, regardless of what it looked like to outsiders.

The first principle of negotiation is that you must be sensitive to the needs of others when you set priorities for what you hope to accomplish. If all parties have the same list of priorities, then it is unlikely that the negotiations will be successful. However, it is usually the case that there will be differences in the priority lists for the two or more parties to the negotiations. This will allow a final outcome where more than one party comes away from the process having satisfied his top priority goal. By being sensitive to the desires of others, you can set your priorities into a structure that makes negotiation success more likely.

The second principle of negotiation is that you must make it very clear to your opponent which are your top priorities and how determined you are to achieve them. It is a fact of human nature that if you are able to reach a decision that gains your top priority objective too easily, you will feel that you could have negotiated an even better outcome. This is true whether you are setting the price for the purchase of a used car or if you are involved in a complex labor contract negotiation. For this reason, most negotiations will and should start out with a firm statement of your goals. These goals should be reiterated and should seem to be inflexible for as long as possible. There is acting involved in such posturing, but the objective is to find out which party most desires a positive outcome to the negotiations. That party will usually show the first sign of flexibility. If no such flexibility is seen on either side, progress may have to be made as the result of setting a deadline or introducing a third party to mediate the process. A final alternative to inflexibility is to walk away from the negotiation process. If and only if your opponent believes that you are truly willing to stop the process, moving to end the negotiations may actually introduce flexibility from your adversary and stimulate the process toward success.

The third principle of negotiation is that although you frequently will have to resolve conflicts by giving in to someone else’s viewpoint, you should always try to get something back in return for your willingness to see things their way. This is usually an acceptable and expected trade procedure. Even when there may not be an item on the table that your opponent is willing to give up in exchange for your flexibility, you may be able to gain something by proposing that he or she commit to a future benefit for you. This is why so many sports team trade negotiations end up including “a player to be named later” or a future draft choice. It is easier to reach agreement in this way because neither party knows the true value of a future benefit.

The fourth principle of negotiation is that decisions proceed from the bottom to the top. For this reason, it may be useful to have some low priority points on which you are willing to give in to your opponent’s viewpoint. They may mean little to you, but after you have relinquished something, it is reasonable for you to expect your adversary to offer you something in return. Not only are smaller points agreed before larger points, but also in formal team negotiations there is a “pecking order” for personnel on the two sides. [Lower level people decide lower level matters. Highest level people come in only when trying to come to the final agreement.]

The fifth principle of negotiation is that when you are not sure what to decide on a particular point, the best tactic is to add something to the discussion which “puts the ball in the other party’s court” and gives your opponent responsibility for the next decision. This approach gives you more time to reach the decision that was facing you, and it may also give you new and valuable information from your opponent’s response on the new matter.

The sixth principle of negotiation is that you can’t please or accommodate everyone. You will definitely have to say No in many situations, and you will have to be firm about it. The word No has great value in that it can be used to reverse or slow down the momentum of a negotiation. You may be willing to concede additional points to your adversary, but judicious use of the word No will help you to gain return concessions and will help you to minimize those items on which you have to yield. It also helps to create an image of you as a tough negotiator, and in negotiations image is very important.

The seventh principle of negotiation is that the party with the greatest detailed knowledge of the matters being discussed has a great advantage. If you have all the details immediately available while your adversary has to repeatedly call for assistance from others or request a break in the process to obtain more information, you are negotiating from strength while the other party is negotiating from weakness. It is very important that you have done your homework before the meetings even start.

Half Full, NOT Half Empty

What the U.S., and for that matter the world, needs to realize going into the future is that the proverbial glass is half full. For all the complaints about slower-than-expected employment growth and too much indebtedness, we have all accomplished a lot on our way back from the economy's burst bubble due to unrealistic home ownership policies and other problems. Whether you are talking about personal career development, governmental projects, or international development, a pessimistic future outlook is dwarfed by an inventory taken to show what we have accomplished in the past. The strength of democracies and market-oriented businesses is that each manages to do one or two good things every day. When you look backward to see how far you have come, you will generally be amazed. The incremental things we do each day appear small because we like to talk about achievement of goals rather than maintenance of progress. Make a little progress every day, week, month, and year. As you continue making that progress, you will be able to look back and see that goals have, indeed, been achieved. The glass is at least half full.

The Secret Key to Weight Loss

Everyone knows that the information in the vast library targeting principles of weight reduction boils down to a few kernels: Eat less. Exercise more. Drink plenty of water. Get sufficient sleep. With regard to the eat less portion of this formula, I suggest that insofar as possible, you eat only foods that you don't like but that are good for you. If you are eating foods that you don't like, you automatically won't eat as much of them. If President George H. W. Bush had to eat broccoli all the time, he would be very likely to lose weight. If you are one of those unfortunates who likes all foods, select a nutritious daily menu, and eat it all the time so that you get bored with it. You'll have to become committed to these approaches. The more you continue to eat the same foods over and over again, especially if they are foods you don't like, the less interesting they will appear to you, and you will tend to eat smaller quantities of them. Follow these steps, and replace between-meals snacks with water to keep yourself from wanting to eat all the time. One caution: You won't succeed if you develop a passion for finding ways to prepare the foods you hate so that they taste better to you. The worse they taste, the more weight you will lose.

The Secret Key to Bank Account Savings

If you want to accumulate long term savings in a bank account, follow this strategy. Every time you get paid or receive any miscellaneous income, deposit all of it into your savings or money market account at your bank. Then transfer only what you immediately need into your checking account. This has two benefits: (1) Because you are transferring from an account with an ongoing balance into your checking account, you get immediate access to your checking account balance. (If you had deposited your pay into checking, you would have had to wait for your deposit check to clear.) (2) By funneling your current pay through your savings account and transferring out only what you need, you will tend to leave some behind in savings for the future. There will be weeks when you need to transfer all of it back out, or perhaps even draw down your residual savings, but over time you will find that some money tends to accumulate in your savings account through this routine. It is much more likely to accumulate long term savings for you than depositing your pay into checking and transferring to savings only what is left after your cumulative spending for the period.

Angels & Warriors - Letter from the Front: A Private's Story

They Call Us Angels

This is the account of a young soldier.

I am coming up on the half time mark of a four month deployment.  I have flown 53 missions in and out of the AOR or Area of Responsibility thus far.  I am a part of the 817^th EAS, which stands for Expeditionary Airlift Squadron.  I am limited on what I can disclose about our mission but it is primarily the supply and transfer of soldiers to and from the war. I have seen and experienced many things thus far that have made my heart beat as fast as it ever has but this is not my account.

A few days ago our mission was to bring the 3rd Battalion / 5th Marines (3/5) Unit, known as the “Dark Horse”, out of the Sangin District of Helmand Province, Afghanistan and back home.  The 3/5 is a battalion-level infantry unit composed of infantry Marines and support personnel. Infantry battalions are the basic tactical units that the regiment uses to accomplish its mission of locating, closing with and destroying the enemy by fire and close combat. The 3/5 is comprised of H&S Co, India Co, Kilo Co, Lima Co, and Weapons Co. The Sangin District is know as one of the most dangerous places in the warfight.  The 3/5 has suffered the most casualties of any unit thus far in the 10 years of Afghan war.

We had a full load of troops planned going out and then got word that there would be an additional two Marines being sent with us on emergency status.  This meant that all seats would be taken plus the two in the cockpit behind the pilots seats.  Often times, as pilots we like to bring troops up for the flights.  Their eyes light up and their gratitude is beyond measure.  Many of them say it is the coolest thing they have ever seen- often times to be in the cockpit is like being in what I imagine Heaven to be like- amongst the clouds and the sun rays, looking down upon snow covered mountains and green grassy valleys.  Sometimes it takes another’s eyes and awe for me to realize how amazing it really is to be flying.  That being said, it is upon us to pick and choose who gets to experience the grand event.  How do we do this?  We ask the entire group a question such as “who thinks they are handy with tools.”  Many hands shoot to the sky.  “Who is good at fixing things?”  A few hands may drop. “Who thinks they can fix a plumbing problem?”  More go down.  “Because we have a problem with our lavatory up here and need a brave soul to help us out or we will be unable to take off.”  Inevitably, the hands that are raised start transitioning from the vertical to the horizontal pointing to the lowest man on the totem pole, usually a private or corporal.  “You’re our man- you get to sit up front with us.”  Everyone laughs for they now realize that dimeing out the private secured their fate to sit down below in the cargo compartment with nothing more than two windows the size of a basketball.

The Private walks up the stairs heavied by his supplies, his backpack, survival vest, armor, and his rifle.  These are the only things that he has. Nothing less and nothing more, mandated by the Marine Corps.  His rifle is his pride and sometimes also his joy.  It’s original clean black shiny finish now long gone leaving what now looks as the soldier does; tired, worn out, beat up, and ready to rest from overuse. White tape- the exact same that I used to use to tape the handles of my hockey sticks and ankles before Friday night high school football games wrap the handle and stock for better grip while firing upon his enemy.  A Marine's gun is his lifeline.  They choose their modifications.  This private had added a M203 grenade launcher to the bottom of the stock, his “go-to round when things got rough”.  His uniform was worn and tattered, the digital camouflage had been completely worn out on the knees and elbows.  Each pocket of his survival vest was stuffed with essentials and 8 magazines of ammo lay across his chest. A strap over his shoulder held about 20 grenade cartridges.  He was a soldier.  He had seen battle.

We got the jet ready for takeoff, strapped them in and upon firewalling the throttles to Max Power heard the joyous roar of the 3/5 over the roaring engines as our wheels left the runway.  In our climb the Private leaned over and told me that “We call you Angels”.  Aircraft that take them away from the Hell that they were in are called Angels.  I was touched but as soon as I felt that good feeling deep inside my chest I felt it rush out as I was quick to realize that the same number of soldiers that we had on our jet and were taking from this Hell, the same number was just delivered by us an hour ago in.  

After leveling off at cruise altitude I took my headset off, turned my head towards the Private and asked what was it like.  I cannot tell you how long the flight is but I can say that it is longer than anyone I know can talk non-stop (well maybe except you pop).  The Private needed to talk.  He needed to release. He needed someone to hear about the horrors of war that was from the outside looking in and our crew was as close as it was going to get at that time.  He told us that their slogan is “Get Some” and get some they did.  They killed thousands of Taliban but it came at a cost—a big cost. As I said above, the 3/5 had suffered the most casualties of any unit thus far in the 10 years of Afghan war.  Along with sending home 27 red ,white and blue draped caskets, the 3/5 also sent home over 180 critically injured warriors, many of them losing arms and legs.  As the Private scrolled through the pictures on his digital camera, each picture was a flip of a coin whether it was going to be a friend that was coming home with us, a friend that had already been sent home maimed by war, or a friend sent home in an American flag blanketed aluminum box.  The pictures were also of their living conditions. A horseshoe of sandbags was their toilet. A cleared piece of ground was their bed. A sealed bag of food that would last until the end of the world if given the chance was their meal. A bottle of water was their shower. A wall made of mud was their protection- and also the place for pictures of home, of wives and little girls, of good things to look forward to if they could just live to see them.  The private said that he found a familiar place before bed to be on his knees thanking the Lord to be alive today and to pray for the same blessing tomorrow, for they lived day by day.

Each day was the same.  They would go out in search of Taliban and IEDs.  “The hardest thing about this war is that they look just the same as the local friendlies; but you can tell it in their eyes.  You can see the evil in their eyes.”  The Private went on to tell me about the IEDs.  “They are smart.  They can make them out of anything.  They are good at it too.  They are so sensitive sometimes all it takes is the weight of fear to set them off.  Many times they scavenge the lost limbs of unfortunate soldiers and use them as triggers.  And finding these things is nearly impossible.  You can probe all day long and still miss them.  We had to resort to what we call fingering.  We literally sift through the sand on our bellies with our fingers to find these things.”  Just the thought of sticking my fingers anywhere close to something that could blow them off made me cringe.  He said that there was just no other way in certain situations.  He had watched one of his buddies clearing for IEDs get blown up, another that had gone to save him get blown up and another that went to save both experience the same fate.  Hearing this made me think about how it would be to be fearful of each step that I take.  The Private told me that he could no longer sleep for the fear was so overwhelming.  The fear for his own life. The fear for his friends. The fear of each step and the fear of never making it home.

When they get home, those that do, must go and see the doctor for PTSD or post traumatic stress disorder.  “We call him the wizard.” He said. “I will tell him what I have seen.  I will tell him that I cannot sleep.  I will tell him that I have nightmares and that I will never be the same.”  I will tell him that one moment we are giving out skittles to the local children and the next we are in a fire fight for our lives calling in close air support to light up our enemies 50 yards from the local town.  I will tell him how screwed up I now am.”  He quickly jumped to a different subject.  What he was looking forward to.  “I haven’t had a shower in over 7 months and I am really going to enjoy a good hot meal.  He video taped the entire approach and landing, told me it was one of the coolest things he ever saw, that if I was ever in Fort Campbell he would let me shoot his 203, and to take care of ourselves and to keep bringing 'em home.

Guest post by:

Captain Joseph G. Dombrow

The Proper Way to Balance the United States Budget

The Republicans and Democrats are competing to see who can do the best job of improving the fiscal status of the United States. They are both going about it the wrong way (as is the Tea Party also). It takes a lot more work, but if you really want to get the country's economy in good shape, you don't reduce the budget. The proper technique is to wipe out the budget altogether. Take it to zero, and then, item by item, decide what should go back into it. If our government had the commitment and stamina to set up a group to completely rebuild the budget from scratch, we would end up operating the country at a much lower financial level. The problem is that our politicians would never approve the process. They would have to justify each and every item in the budget, which would be a colossal job, but more important, it would expose the flimsy justification for many of the components of the existing budget. There are many parts of the federal budget that are there just because they pay for doing things the way we have done them for a long time in the past. As Shakespeare said, "The past is prologue." The only way they will find most (but not all) of the unjustified spending is to throw everything out, and start over. The nature of politics is that some waste will find its way back into the new budget because of the need to compromise and horsetrade between opposing views, but a huge amount of what we now spend will not be justifiable to either side. Assign three of the best minds from each party plus a couple of economics professors to a special committee, and the job will become doable, even if extremely difficult.

Decision Day

Today is Decision Day, which I recommend as a new National Focus Day. December 31st is the one day of the year when people seem to have no trouble making decisions. Almost anyone can quickly give you a list of his or her New Years resolutions, which are the result of a decision-making process. However, as we well know from our own past resolutions, making such a decision is only the beginning of the process. Commitment and follow-up are required all year long. The same applies to your other decisions. Never decide to do something unless you are committed to following through with it. Similarly, never tell someone that you will take on an obligation unless you mean it. Perhaps "Commitment" should have its spelling changed to "Commitmeant".