09/27/13 ~ DIGITAL WORLD ENV

Friday, September 27, 2013

Top 10 Jean-Claude Van Damme Moments

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Van Damme - Kick boxer ( Final Fight ) VIDEO

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The Art Of Negotiation: How To Make Sure You Always Get What You Want

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MONEY • PAUL HUDSON • SEP 27, 11:10AM

When people think about the concept of negotiation, they most commonly relate it to business. Negotiation is used in business with every transaction of every day. Whether it is selling products or services to consumers, purchasing raw material in order to manufacture products for resale or purchasing the ready products for redistribution, there is always some sort of negotiation taking place.

Even when we as consumers go to the local store to pick up a pack of gum, we could negotiate the price, but we don’t because we believe the money requested is a fair tradeoff so we accept without argument (or we don’t even consider the option of negotiating because such negotiations are not common practice). Yet, business is not the only area in which negotiations take place. In fact, as human beings, we negotiate every time that we interact with another person.

We negotiate with our friends, our family, our managers, bosses, boyfriends and girlfriends, and even our children. Because of something called the ‘favor bank,’ it’s only human nature, existing anthropologically in different forms throughout different groups of people, to feel a need to reciprocate when someone gives you a ‘gift’ — even if that gift is solely your time and attention.

You may help your mother with something one day and never even consider her ‘owing’ you anything, nature dictates that she would be much more inclined to help you out were you ever to need help. Also, even were we not to ‘expect’ something in return, we would feel cheated were our request for reciprocation in a time of need be turned down. The level of reciprocation does not always need to be on the exact same level either — it really comes down to what the other person believes to be acceptable and also what they believe would be acceptable to you.

Say that you yourself were given some sort of gift; you would consider what you would be willing to give in return and what you believed that person would believe to be an acceptable reciprocation. These are all things that we consider — even if only briefly — every time that we ask something of someone else, regardless of whether or not there is a physical price tag associated with the transaction.

We understand that even a person’s time and attention are valuable and for this reason automatically, as long as we are considerate people, begin to think of ways to bring the reciprocity balance back to equilibrium. This is the reason so many relationships fail when they become one-sided. When one person gives much more than the other, it’s common for that person to begin to feel as if they are being used and believe themselves to be at a loss.

The main reason that I am approaching my argument from this angle is because once you can understand that even the closest and most intimate of interpersonal human interaction is in itself a sort of negotiation, then you cannot argue that every other interaction isn’t also a negotiation. This is important because once you learn the most fundamental part of negotiating you will be able to not only apply such tactics to your business, but also to your life at home. The only fundamental truth about the process of negotiation that you need to know is this: in order to negotiate successfully, you must find the Common Ground.

We’re going to do business together. I want something. And you want something. In order to find a deal that works for us both and leaves us both satisfied then we have to address what each of us wants. We must understand what we want most, prioritize between our wants, and understand what we would be willing to trade in return.

Once we are able to find an agreement that gives me what I want at a price I am willing to pay for it as well as giving you what you want at a price you are willing to pay for it, then and only then can we do business together successfully. If I am willing to pay up to $5,000 for your car and you are only willing to part with it for no less than $5,500, then guess what: we will never do business together. If neither of us is willing to shift our wants and/or acceptable tradeoffs, then there is no common ground for us to stand on.

It’s a very simple concept, yet most people don’t utilize it the way they should. People waste their time and energy dragging out negotiations when it is clear that doing business would leave the parties involved either unhappy or taken advantage of. When selling to a potential customer, you have to set a price that the consumer would deem acceptable in return for the benefits of the product or services rendered.

Even when you are planning your weekend with your girlfriend you are likely to trade staying home to watch “The Notebook” on Saturday night for, let’s say, her going to watch a football game with you on Sunday. Most of the time common ground can be easily reached — but not always. Sometimes finding that ground can prove to be very difficult. However, if there is a common ground to be found then it can be found — you just have to lead the conversation in an efficient way.

Assuming that you already know what you want and what you are willing to trade for it, find out what the other person wants and is willing to pay as tradeoff. Ask questions. Depending on whom you are negotiating with, you may need to do quite a bit of digging before the other is willing to let it be known what terms they are willing to agree upon.

This is especially true during business negotiations when each party is doing their best to get the most out of the deal — and during negotiations with difficult lovers. If you want to get the upper hand, then get to the bottom of what the other is minimally willing to accept and the most that they are willing to give you in return. This is where the art of negotiation really takes place. It’s not before understanding the location of the common ground; it’s outwitting the other once you know exactly where it is the other stands and how you can position yourself within those grounds in order to get as much as you can for as little as possible.

I’d like to think that lovers would be less concerned about getting the biggest bang for their buck than making sure that the ground is somewhat level — possibly even skewed in the other’s direction. But the same principles stand in no matter what negotiation you may find yourself. Negotiation outside of business is a form of manipulation.

You may not be completely manipulating the actions of the other, but you are directing the other towards their final decision. The best part is, as long as you stay within the bounds of the common ground then you really aren’t hurting the other person, simply making yourself a little happier. As long as the deal you make is on common grounds then by definition both parties must be content with the outcome of the negotiation. Find the common ground and the boundaries surrounding it and you will always come out on top.

Top photo credit: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

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Blood On The Field: The 2022 World Cup In Qatar Is Being Brought To You By Slave Labor

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WORLD • SEAN LEVINSON • SEP 27, 12:49PM

Dozens of Nepalese migrant workers have given their lives while thousands more continue to endure abusive labor conditions in preparing Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup.

Nearly one Nepalese worker died every day over the summer, most of which were young men who had heart attacks or work-related accidents. The Guardian found that these deaths were caused by labor abuse comparable to modern-day slavery.

According to documents obtained from the Nepalese embassy in Qatar, at least 44 migrant workers died between June 4 and August 8.

Some of the workers said they hadn’t been paid in months and have been denied access to drinking water in the sweltering heat, which often runs up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit. Some have had their passports ID cards confiscated, reducing them to the status of illegal aliens void of any legal protection, not like they would have the money to go anywhere else, anyway.

Workers on other sites said those in charge of World Cup preparation routinely confiscate the workers’ passports and retain their salaries to keep them from leaving.

Over 30 Nepalese are currently seeking refuge at their embassy to escape these horrific working conditions.

“We’d like to leave, but the company won’t let us,” said one Nepalese migrant employed at Lusail City development, a $45bn (£28bn) city being built from scratch that will include a 90,000-seat stadium where the final game of the World Cup will be played.

“I’m angry about how this company is treating us, but we’re helpless. I regret coming here, but what to do? We were compelled to come just to make a living, but we’ve had no luck.”

The event’s organizers, the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, told the Guardian that it was “deeply concerned with the allegations that have been made against certain contractors/sub-contractors working on Lusail City’s construction site and considers this issue to be of the utmost seriousness.”

“We have been informed that the relevant government authorities are conducting an investigation into the allegations,” it added.

The Guardian’s investigation found Nepalese construction workers sleeping 12 to a room in filthy hostels and repeatedly growing ill in the process. Some said they work without pay and are forced to beg for food as if they were homeless.

“We were working on an empty stomach for 24 hours; 12 hours’ work and then no food all night,” said Ram Kumar Mahara, 27. “When I complained, my manager assaulted me, kicked me out of the labour camp I lived in and refused to pay me anything. I had to beg for food from other workers.”

Almost all of the workers have huge debts from Nepal, one of the world’s poorest countries. To re-pay recruitment agents and the borderline-bankrupt Nepalese government for their jobs in Qatar, one of the world’s richest countries, the workers are denied their wages.

Nepalese ambassador to Qatar, Maya Kumari Sharma, recently described Qatar as an “open jail.”

“The evidence uncovered by the Guardian is clear proof of the use of systematic forced labour in Qatar,” said Aidan McQuade, director of Anti-Slavery International, which was founded in 1839. “In fact, these working conditions and the astonishing number of deaths of vulnerable workers go beyond forced labour to the slavery of old where human beings were treated as objects. There is no longer a risk that the World Cup might be built on forced labour. It is already happening.”

According to the Guardian, Qatar will spend $100 billion on infrastructure projects related to the World Cup, including nine state-of-the-art stadiums, $20 billion worth of new roads, $24 billion for a high-speed railroad and 55,000 hotel rooms to accommodate visitors.

One worker told the Guardian that he’d “like to leave, but the company won’t let us. If we run away, we become illegal and that makes it hard to find another job. The police could catch us at any time and send us back home. We can’t get a resident permit if we leave.”

Even more despicable is how the workers’ torturous lives are constantly mocked in the form of concerns for the participants in the 2022 competition.

“Everyone is talking about the effect of Qatar’s extreme heat on a few hundred footballers,” said Umesh Upadhyaya, general secretary of the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions. “But they are ignoring the hardships, blood and sweat of thousands of migrant workers, who will be building the World Cup stadiums in shifts that can last eight times the length of a football match.”

Via: The Guardian, Top Photo Courtesy: YouTube

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The 25 Best Photos Of Celebrities Showing Off On Instagram

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ENTERTAINMENT • WILLIAM KENT • SEP 27, 1:00PM

Celebrities are notorious for using Instagram as a platform to show off exactly how awesome their lives are or simply how crazy they are.

From Justin Bieber carelessly flaunting his diamond watches and Ferraris, to Rihanna showing a little more than some skin, Instagram show-offs continue to make their fans feel like…well, fans.

Check out the 25 best photos of celebrities showing off on Instagram below and try not to hate your life so much!

25. Rick Ross wants you to know that he’s rich forever.

24. Justin Bieber is channeling his inner Britney Spears.

23. Candice Swanepoel can hold her liquor.

22. Cara Delevingne is the center of attention in Monte Carlo.

21. Wiz Khalifa thinks he’s Tony Montana.

20. God only knows what possessed Miley to do this.

19. Kendall Jenner needs Robin Leech to narrate her life.

18. This is Diddy’s view.

17. LeBron appreciates the classics.

16. Miranda Kerr is such a show off.

15. JR Smith gets Rolex Sky Dwellers as gifts and wants you to know it.

14. Rihanna prefers rose gold.

13. Nothing was the same for Aubrey Graham.

12. Kylie Jenner channeling her inner Drake.

11. Carmelo has enough cigars to open a shop.

10. Kim Kardashian is well-connected.

9. Jay Z seems to finally be rubbing off on Beyoncé.

8. Paula Patton takes a break from twerking to hang with 50 Cent and Miley’s VMAs dance partner.

7. Nicki Minaj shows off a matte black Maybach in her driveway.

6. Leave Britney alone. She’s busy being a mom.

5. Snoop Dogg has never been higher.

4. They don’t call him Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather for nothing.

3. Scott Disick is the lord of showing off.

2. Lady Gaga is still odd.

1. This is what Birdman’s meetings look like.

Photos courtesy of Instagram

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Kyrie Irving Travels To Africa To Show The Young Bloods How To Dance (Video)

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SPORTS • ADAM HAYES • SEP 27, 1:11PM

Kyrie Irving is the next great superstar in the making, besides Steph Curry, of course. I mean, he has it all. The leadership, the skills and, most importantly, that marketability factor.

At just 21 years old (he was born in 1992), Kyrie is already the face of a franchise, as well as a piece to one of the most clever marketing campaigns with Pepsi, where he plays the role of the ever-popular Uncle Drew.

But there is much more to young Irving than just that. He is an upstanding citizen and even spent some of his offseason in Africa, helping the needy and visiting with school children. But if you know Kyrie, you know he’s not just going to arrive, show face and dip. No, he gave the kids something a reason to dance when he arrived.

In conjunction with UNICEF, Kyrie had a nice little impromptu dance-off with the African kids, who definitely gave him a run for his money. With the NBA season quickly approaching, it’s good to see this guy take the time to show the kids some love. He’d better get back to the states and focus, though, because training camp starts next week!

H/T: Bleacher Report, Photo Courtesy of: NBA

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Adorable 2-Year-Old Dances To Beyoncé With Her Mom, Absolutely Crushes It (Video)

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HUMOR • TYLER GILDIN • SEP 27, 1:14PM

Is there anything cuter than a mother-daughter dance duo, especially when the daughter is two-years old?

Watch the duo jam out to Beyoncé‘s “Never Let You Go” in a hilarious/adorable choreographed dance:

Is Beyoncé looking for any back-up dancers? We might have some good candidates here.

H/T: Huffington Post, Top Photo Courtesy of YouTube

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Adorable 2-Year-Old Dances To Beyoncé With Her Mom, Absolutely Crushes It (Video)

11:37 AM No comments

HUMOR • TYLER GILDIN • SEP 27, 1:14PM

Is there anything cuter than a mother-daughter dance duo, especially when the daughter is two-years old?

Watch the duo jam out to Beyoncé‘s “Never Let You Go” in a hilarious/adorable choreographed dance:

Is Beyoncé looking for any back-up dancers? We might have some good candidates here.

H/T: Huffington Post, Top Photo Courtesy of YouTube

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The Quintessential Stoner Moments Described By Our Favorite Stoner Friends

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LIFE • LAURA ARGINTAR • SEP 27, 1:27PM

Whether it’s getting high and giggling for ten minutes straight, or lighting up and becoming paranoid that we’re seeing things, seasoned stoners have experienced it all.

And who better to laugh with about these classic pothead moments than the people who we enjoy smoking with the most: our blazing movie friends.

From not realizing that you’re driving 20 miles under the speed limit to accidentally torching your eyebrows, here are the quintessential stoner moments as described by our beloved stoner friends.