Power: it doesn’t matter who you are, it matters when you are and how you are
There may be several options that will be determined by the specifics of your own situation. Take time to consider them, and use them to your advantage. Above all, don’t forget that if you want someone to believe you have power, you need to behave as though you believe it too.
In negotiation, who you are (your size, your brand name, your reputation – or relative lack of these) doesn’t necessarily determine the power you may or may not have. More important is to understand when you are negotiating (and the impact that time may have, positively or negatively, on your own and your counterparty’s power), and how the circumstances of yourself and your counterparty may affect where power sits.
If you can understand the impact of time and circumstances on your negotiation, on yourself, and your counterparty, the effect can be to dramatically shift the power balance away from what might seem an obviously more powerful opponent. In these circumstances, a far smaller, less significant player in the market can suddenly find themselves with a higher, and entirely disproportionate level of power.
Theresa May
ADVERTISEMENT
One area where this frequently occurs is politics. In May 2017 in the UK, the Conservative leader and Prime Minister, Theresa May, took the decision to hold a snap general election, only two years after the previous one. Arguably buoyed by positive opinion polls in the April that showed a 20 point lead for the Conservatives, and with a desire to secure a clear majority in parliament to aid her negotiations over the process of exiting the European Union (‘Brexit’), she felt confident she would succeed. For a variety of reasons this failed to materialise, and the result was a hung parliament, with the
Conservatives losing 13 seats whilst the Labour party gained 30. In order to shore up her support, she opted to do a deal with an Irish political party, The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), who, from being a very minor player on the political landscape, suddenly found themselves with some real power. They used this power to their advantage and in the negotiation to agree their support for the Conservatives they secured £1bn in financial support and potential new tax powers. The pressure of both time and circumstance had acted to shift the balance of power in the negotiations over to the far
ADVERTISEMENT
smaller DUP and away from the UK’s dominant political party.
This understanding of the impact of time and circumstances, of how to really get inside the head of the counterparty, reflects the classic David and Goliath story. Taking time to appreciate where the opportunities to swing the balance of power in your favour may be, even against a seemingly undefeatable opponent, can allow small players to accomplish great things.
Tyrells took on Tesco in the UK
ADVERTISEMENT
In 2006, Tyrells, a privately owned UK crisp manufacturer with a turnover at the time of just £10m, took on Tesco, who was at the height of its dominance of the UK grocery market with turnover of £39.5bn, in a dispute over the stocking of its products.
A classic David vs Goliath. Tyrells had established its premium price business through supplying a network of 6,000 small, independent retailers and upmarket grocery retailer, Waitrose, and did not want its products stocked in Tesco. Tesco stocked them anyway. Sourced from the grey market they sold the brand at a discounted price in 70 of its stores. Tyrells appointed lawyers to examine their options. Shortly after, Tesco agreed to stop selling its lines. A victory for David over Goliath. But how did ‘little’ Tyrells manage to succeed against this much bigger opponent? Certainly part of their success was due to the time they took to understand Tesco’s circumstances. T
he day before they agreed to Tyrells’ position, Tesco had launched a major initiative to boost links with small suppliers to address its image problem in this area – a focus and commitment that the retailer has continued very successfully to the present day, transforming its image and results. Tesco wisely recognised that, whilst they wanted to supply its customers with the products, continuing its dispute with Tyrells would have sent conflicting messages.
Tyrells recognised that this had shifted the balance of power in its favour. Five years later, after rapid growth, Tyrells could be found on the shelves of 450 Tesco stores at its intended premium price.
Negotiation planning
ADVERTISEMENT
In your negotiation planning, when considering how much power you do or don’t have, take a step back and review the situation objectively. In his book ‘Getting Past No’, William Ury describes the concept of going to the balcony to allow yourself to look at a situation from a new vantage point and from there gain a different perspective. He was discussing this specifically in relation to resolving conflicts, but it is equally applicable to the understanding of how to shift the balance of power in your favour.
This idea complements perfectly the concept we discuss on our workshops of getting inside the other party’s head. Only by doing this can you truly hope to identify how to optimise your power, either by recognising the weaknesses in the other party created by time and circumstance, or by appreciating your own weaknesses caused by the same factors, therefore ensuring these can never be exploited by the other side.
When it comes to understanding where the balance of power lies, there is one thought to keep front and centre at all times: You are far more equal than you think you are. As soon as you forget this, power starts to ebb away, because you are literally giving it to the other party. It’s the perception of where the balance of power lies that is key. Your challenge as a negotiator is to keep the perceived balance of power in your favour for as long and as broadly as you can, within the matters under negotiation.
How do you do that?
There may be several options that will be determined by the specifics of your own situation. Take time to consider them, and use them to your advantage. Above all, don’t forget that if you want someone to believe you have power, you need to behave as though you believe it too.
Business
P1 Fitness – The Manchester gym that strikes the perfect blend of PT and group-based coaching
Danny Jones
We here at The Manc team are trying to get fit; it can be hard to find time for the gym when you’re busy, not to mention staying in shape when you’ve got a food scene as good as Manchester’s, which is exactly why P1 Fitness Studio is a perfect match for us.
Maybe you’ve fancied giving a personal trainer a go, or even tried a class or two, but perhaps the schedule, the price, the location or some other factor meant it wasn’t for you.
Whatever your reasoning, if you’re the kind of person who can admit they need a bit of a kick up the backside to get their arse in gear and actually stick at this gym lark, we can assure you this is an ideal place to build the right kinds of habits.
And trust us, they’ll keep pushing to make sure it sinks in.
Top-end facilities, secure lockers, every bit of kit you’ll ever need and much more (Credit: The Manc)
Aside from the anti-ego environment in general – you won’t catch anyone staring at themselves in mirrors here – it’s also just nice to be around people with similar lifestyles.
Boasting tonnes of positive reviews online, P1 Fitness is a place for busy professionals who aren’t willing to let work and all other time-consuming parts of ‘adulting’ be an excuse to not carve out less than an hour to better themselves.
And for most people, that really is all it takes to start seeing a difference; two 50-minute sessions might not sound like a lot to some, but the effort you put in during the group workouts is more than enough to get the benefit.
They focus on quality, not quantity, making sure every day that you turn up is worthwhile, and no drop of sweat is wasted.
Better still, they keep the numbers low and even break off into smaller groups to explain and tailor workouts to suit each person.
It’s not just weekly blocks stuck on a wall that you have to stick to: everything is flexible, and they do try and give everyone as much one-on-one attention as possible from the P1 staff.
Here’s what some other members have had to say in their recent testimonials:
“The biggest difference isn’t that I’m fitter and stronger. It’s that I don’t have to think about it anymore. Before P1 I’d spend all week telling myself I needed to go to the gym, then I’d be too tired, it’d be busy, I didn’t know what to do, and I’d end up doing nothing and beating myself up about it.
“Now I just turn up twice a week. Someone tells me what to do, I get coached to do it right, then shower, go back to work and my fitness takes care of itself. It’s one less thing I have to worry about.”
Louise
“I genuinely thought I hated gyms. In fact, when I saw one, I used to cross the street to avoid it… Turns out I hated the ‘usuall’ gym experience. Wondering what I was supposed to be doing, fighting for equipment in the crowd and being self-conscious about my form.
“At P1, I simply walk in, everything’s ready – someone coaches me through the session, we have a laugh in the group, and before I know it I’m finished. I actually look forward to training now, which is crazy.
Damien
One of our very own, Lonnie, says it’s given him a sense of “structure, routine and a community” in the gym like never before, and added that “it’s become that third space where people can come together to better themselves in a fun and unique way.”
Abby is ever the hard-working, friendly face; her husband and fellow co-owner, Peter, is a ‘BFG’ who will always push you to your limits but knows when not to beast you; Ben is a great instructor with a great way of breaking down movements, and Mel is the smiling assassin who is as dedicated as she is smiley.
Then there’s Katie, who is somehow juggling a PhD and working at P1 part-time, all whilst being an absolute Duracell bunny of a trainer. All in all, you couldn’t ask for a better team.
Best of all, you can choose when to register for a session based not only on who you prefer working with, but whatever time suits you; you can even put your name down as last-gasp as you like – in fact, we’ve turned up with five minutes’ notice on more than one occasion.
It’s also great to see that they’re more than happy to roll out a mat or pick up a weight and properly get stuck in there with you.
Put simply: much like you, all of these guys have their own special traits, but one thing they do all have in common is an incredible amount of drive and passion for the work they do, not to mention the knowledge and experience to back it up.
We’re not going to give you any harder of a sell than that; all we’ll say is that we’re feeling more positive about our current fitness journey than we have in a long time, and if you want to make similar progress, P1 might just be for you.
So, if you are truly looking to get fitter in a setting where consistency, accountability and community thrive, consider this your sign to finally get serious.
You can find out more and enquire about joining right HERE.
ADVERTISEMENT
You won’t find a friendlier team. (Credit: Supplied)
Manc architects submit plans to demolish 1970s office block and make way for new residential area
Danny Jones
A Manchester-based architects has submitted promising proposals to demolish an old 1970s-era office block and make way for a brand new residential community in Stockport.
The vision seems fairly ambitious and lofty – pun intended – but the potential outcome could be stunning.
Ollier Smurthwaite (OS) Architects are the local practice behind the new housing plans, which will not only provide nearly 300 new homes but also bring part of the Stopfordian skyline down; it’s not often you hear of things getting lower when so much of Greater Manchester just keeps building up.
Sharing the first proper glimpse at what they hope the redeveloped corner of the busy A6 main road will look like, many have been pleased to see familiar red brick and a traditional feel as opposed to more glass towers.
Writing a lengthy caption alongside the social media post, the OS state, “We are preparing a planning application for the St Christopher’s site in Stockport.
“Located at the prominent junction of Wellington Road South and Longshut Lane, the proposal aims to transform the prominent corner by demolishing the existing 10-storey 1970s office block to make way for a new residential community.
“The proposals are for a modern ‘mansion’ block with taller ceilings, more windows, better communal areas and private gardens.”
It remains to be seen at what price point these apartments will be available for.
Promising a total of 278 ‘new dwellings’, the scheme will crucially see the height of the existing plot lowered to fall in line with other neighbouring properties, as St Christopher’s House currently sits well above the nearby terraces and its metropolitan style does stand out against the surrounding brickwork.
The early reception to the proposed plans looks to be largely positive, too, with one user commenting online, “A very nice looking building with character. More of these please”; another went so far as to add, “These are the sort of modern buildings that will become grade listed.”
It’s also worth showcasing what exactly these blueprints look like when they’re brought to life, such as another development over in Longsight:
Render vs Reality. We recently completed our Daisy Bank scheme in Longsight Manchester for 72 new homes. The scheme takes contextual references from Dalton Ellis Hall & Victoria Park Christian Fellowship in the adjacent conservation area.@createstreets@archi_tradition… pic.twitter.com/DasRUtaylh
Safe to say that seeing what businesses trying to regenerate boroughs actually deliver compared to their initial mock-ups is always useful.
The award-winning firm goes on to add that “the building will be deliberately stepped back from the pavement to create a planted tree-lined avenue”, which will also revolve around a central courtyard and residents’ gardens, with ground-floor flats benefitting from private patios.
CGIs of shared communal roof terraces also give the designs that added modern look, with few other places in the vicinity offering this kind of space. It could be a welcome addition to the region that is already going through plenty of change at the minute.
Another big construction scheme is the one being carried out by Capital and Centric over the new Weir Mill district, which could be transformational for the town centre.
The Manc -
10th October 2020 
