Window Shopping, Monterey, California

I had an attorney named Allan Stamm. He was over 70 years old when I hired him to put together a shareholder agreement for a partnership. As the push and pull over the agreement got more complicated, I became frustrated.

One day Allan said to me, “There are attorneys out there with reputations for being tough negotiators, so tough, they have trouble closing a deal. As I got older, I realized instead of all the wrangling over the nuances of a contract, what people want is to make the situation work and do business.”

That comment began to change the way I thought about business. Tough negotiation is an entrance for greed and the lust for power. Fair negotiation is good business and moves the world forward.