Business 261will not try to get the better of a negotiation—but then, that
is all just part of being a good businessman. Does this mean
you will never hear ‘no’ uttered in a business negotiation?
Probably not, but then it is easy to understand a direct no.
The subtleties of the different kinds of ‘yes’ will more likely
cause the most misunderstandings.
I have heard Westerners say they were cheated when
there was really a misunderstanding as to what was agreed
to in the fi rst place. This can lead Westerners to believe that
their Egyptian counterparts ‘lied’ to them, when in point of
fact, the Egyptians had behaved honourably and honestly
according to their own understanding of the agreement.
I cannot tell you the number of times when trying to
arrange things for my students that I thought there was total
understanding as to who was to pay for or arrange what—
only to fi nd out later that my counterpart’s understanding
of the agreement was different from mine. This does
not mean that my counterpart acted in a dishonourable or
dishonest way—he did not. Rather, it meant that we simply
did not communicate our respective expectations quite
accurately. My only suggestion to avoid this kind of situation is
to spell out in minute detail just what you expect. This won’t
eliminate all misunderstanding but can certainly reduce the
frustration level and number of misunderstandings.
How meetings are conducted requires the development
of fl exibility and patience as well. If you expect to have the
Do’s and Don’ts in the Workplace
Do dress conservatively and well.
Do offer guests coffee, tea and/or other refreshments.
Don’t be late for meetings (even though you may sit
for an hour or more before you are called).
Don’t get irritated at waiting for a guest or to go into
a meeting.
Do bring business or personal cards for all meetings
and guests.