Successful negotiation.
First thing that came to my head was business deals and boardrooms.
But honestly? The most successful negotiation I’ve ever done was with a 5 year old.
Last two month. I was home in Onitsha. My sister Amaka.
We wanted to watch different things.
I wanted to watch the News. Just 10 minutes to see what’s happening with fuel and economy. She wanted cartoons. Paw Patrol. Loud.
And she was already crying. Full volume. Floor. Drama.
My Mum was in the kitchen shouting "please just handle her!"
In my head I was like "I’m the adult here. I should win."
But winning meant 30 minutes of screaming and I was tired.
So I did something different. I sat down on the floor with her.
"Amaka," I said. "Okay. Negotiation."
She stopped crying for 2 seconds to look at me like "what is this aunty saying" 😂
I said "You want Paw Patrol. I want news. We both want TV. So what if we do 10 minutes of news, then 20 minutes of Paw Patrol eee Amaka? And during Paw Patrol you let me eat my biscuit in peace."
She crossed her arms. Thought about it. Really thought.
Then she said "15 minutes Paw Patrol."
I said "12."
He said "Deal." and stretched out her tiny hand.
We shook on it.
10 minutes news. 12 minutes Paw Patrol. Peace in the house.
That was it. That was the whole negotiation.
But here’s what I learned while the timer was running in my head:
We think negotiation is for markets and contracts.
But it’s also for siblings. For spouses. For friends. For
yourself when you’re trying to convince yourself to go to the gym 😅
The successful part wasn’t that I got what I wanted.
It was that nobody was crying after. And Amaka still talks about "our deal" till today.
So maybe successful negotiation is just this: making the other person feel heard, and finding the middle where both people can live.
What’s the weirdest place you’ve had to negotiate? Did it work? let me know👇
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