Consensus is a daily occurrence for me here in Tokyo. As the only American at my firm of 1200 or so, it has been quite an eye-opening experience for me. I have benefitted greatly from this education in compromise. The conversations internally are all in Japanese and as such are subject to the very, very Japanese concept of “Nemawashi” (Nay’-ma-wah-shee). This requires one to get the concept to be presented to be manipulated into a form or state that will likely not be disagreed with when presented at a group meeting. In reality what this means is seeing any idea or opinion presented by any team member as belonging to everyone.
I want to come back to that in a second.
First however, I think it is important to note that I often hear from peers that they are having trouble in a negotiation because they understand the other side’s point but do not agree. I also hear that they do not understand why someone cannot agree because their own idea is so logical. This very dualistic approach to things is exactly what limited me prior to living here for the past 18 years. I am now a firm believer in the common problem, common solutions approach to resolution.
As part of TalkBoard, I would see all of the pother people on the board as part of the same common purpose unit of which I was a part. That would mean that any difference of opinion on issues would simply be a different way of looking at the same problem. That every difference could be solved through compromise, allowing for staggered solutions, and by truly feeling that what the other person had to offer was exactly I should be listening to as a member of the team. If they were to do the same vis a vis me, I sincerely believe, based on years and years of experience as lead negotiator on many deals for our company that the progress of the TalkBoard would be terrific.
I honestly believe that of all the ways in which I could add value, this is perhaps the biggest asset I bring to the group. I hope that we will be able to use my skill set after the election.