"Moving Forward" with Negotiations

Akili Mobley is a coach; speaker and radio personality with an Arizona based talk show, entitled “Moving Forward”.  For the last 20 years, Akili has worked extensively in radio broadcasting, radio programming, education and training.  Akili has set out to help people live their life by “design” instead of the superficial standards set by others.  Though she’s had the opportunity to utilize television and the Internet, she has found a great deal of love and success by using radio as her vehicle to success.

On September 2, 2012 I was invited to Akili’s radio station to speak with her about the art of negotiation, its process and her daily experience using negotiation.  I was able to uncover a great deal of knowledge, wisdom and honesty during our interview.  Ultimately, Akili has a passion for helping others and negotiation is all about being in tune with the “needs” of others.

Question # 1:  How does coaching allow you to separate people from the problem when negotiating?  “When a client comes to me, it’s my goal to assess how much coaching they’ll need and create a development plan.  At times, it’s difficult to get people to understand their own worth and value in order to help them separate themselves from their own problems.  Negotiation begins in the first session, helping them realize that their life can be changed by their mindset. The goal is to open my clients up to being reprogrammed, however many are resistant”. 

Question # 2: How do you use objective criteria when negotiating?  “Before I take on a new client, I want to make sure that the relationship is going to be mutually beneficial.  I’ve developed a questionnaire designed to assess their level of readiness for coaching.  If my prospective client does not score high enough on the assessment, I will assign to them reading material to be completed before performing a second assessment.  If a client shows readiness for coaching, there is a standard coaching contract that covers any issues that may present themselves during the coach/client relationship.  There are a few things in the contract that are negotiable, however I am open to client suggestions”.

Question # 3: How would you handle a client attempting to use dirty tricks?   “In a coach/client relationship, dirty tricks are not tolerated and the relationship is in danger of being severed.  However, as a radio personality, I am responsible for finding my own sponsors.  When discussing the advertising contract, a few organizations have attempted to use dirty tricks.  My first instinct in handling an individual or organization using a dirty trick is not to call them out, instead I will ask a clarifying question to make sure I can regain control of the conversation.  Secondly, I will continue ask questions in order to get to the confirmed need.  My goal is to disarm them, let them know my services are beneficial for them and ultimately I’ve created a win-win”.