Friday, June 24, 2016

CCIM Miami-Dade-Monroe District Monthly Luncheon / Tom Dixon

On the 10th of June 2016, it was back to Morton’s Steakhouse in Coral Gables for the CCIM Miami-Dade-Monroe District monthly luncheon.

Tom Dixon Addresses CCIM's
For the third consecutive month there was a sold-out crowd that included CCIM designees, CCIM candidates, lawyers, investors, sponsors, and many guests. The special talk of the day was on the Art of Negotiation by Tom Dixon, from Dixon Commercial Real Estate. He has been a resident of Miami for more than 40 years. His career began as an appraiser and transitioned into commercial brokerage and tax assessment. He is a past President of MAR (Miami Association of Realtors) and on the CIASF Board of Directors.


“The more the back and forth the stronger it is.”
 Tom Dixon

The first stage of negotiation is “Preparation”, where one must know the difference between position and interest.  A position is a specific solution that is not flexible. An interest is a desire that may be satisfied in several ways.

Mr. Dixon gave the example of an orange. Imagine two buyers who are looking for an orange. They both need an orange, which is their position. Unfortunately, there is only one orange, so one party wins and the other party loses.

Not so fast. What if we were to probe for the hidden reason, their interest, for their respective position? The first buyer needs an orange because her grandfather is sick and wants to make him orange juice; the second buyer needs an orange because the zest will give flavor to his cooking; their position is the same, both need an orange, but their interest is different. Hence, a creative approach to negotiation can actually produce a win/win situation.

Mr. Dixon went on to name some famous gambits of negotiation:
  •  The Flinch: “You are asking for how much?”
  •  Good Guy/ Bad Guy: “I would like to but they won’t approve.”
  •  The Krunch: “But can’t you do better?”
  •  The Bogey: “But this is all I got?”

The second stage of negotiation is “Action”. The strategy here is to have the other side make the first offer. Start with a high goal because the higher you aim the better you will come out. Also, remember the three F’s to avoid disagreement:

1.      Feel: I know how you feel…
2.      Felt: Others have felt the same…
3.      Found: I have found that…

The final stage of negotiation is “Agreement”. In this stage one must have an agreement in mind and be willing to walk away and walk back. If a deadlock is reached, one should seek common ground on a personal level and offer minor concessions; but don’t make a concession without getting something in return.

“When you give people what they want, they’ll give you what you want.”
Dr. Chester L. Karrass

Carlos Rodriguez Jr.
CCIM Candidate and Miami Dade-Monroe Blogger / KW Commercial

References:

CCIM Sponsors:

CCIM's at Morton's Steakhouse / Coral Gables

Sandra Goldstein, CCIM Introduces Speaker Jose Fernandez