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Hen Parties versus Stag Parties – The Differences

The biggest difference between hen parties and stag parties is that hen parties are celebrated by women and stag parties are celebrated by men. The rest of the differences between hen parties and stag parties will vary in degree, depending upon the nature of the party. For instance, many hen and stag parties may take place at the same locations, but will often include male strippers versus female strippers.

Also, if it is a more feminine-oriented female party there may be more pampering activities that may take place, such as visiting a spa where party-goers can receive a massage. Another big difference is that perhaps a female hen party may include a pajama party, which would normally not take place at a stag party. However, if women do not necessarily want a traditionally feminine hen party, their parties may possibly consist of exactly the same elements as a man’s stag party. For instance, many women enjoy water sports such as windsurfing, or they may like to swim.

Perhaps these women would also like to go hiking as well. They may also want to visit various historical sites. Many men participate in the same activities, so in this case the only difference may be in the clothes that the men or women would wear, and other minor distinquishments between the sexes. If one is going to describe actual differences between all-male or all-female parties there could be quite a few common misconceptions or stereotypes. For instance, some may suggest that men are wilder than women, and more independent. On the contrary, many women could prove this to not be true. One of the other common stereotypes may also be that males may enjoy racing or other sporting activities than the women would. This may or may not be true.

One major real difference perhaps between hen and stag parties may be that of communication. Women are naturally more prone to want to get to know each other on a deeper level than men are. Therefore, they may possibly play more “get-to-know-you” type games in someone’s home than a man would. However, both groups would generally concede that alcohol, sexy strippers, or a bottle of champagne is in order for this type of celebration. Furthermore, both would consider hiring limo drivers for the occasion as well. So, when a person thinks of the true differences between men and women parties there may not be any real differences. If so, those differences are often very minor. Again, most people would agree that the biggest difference is that a hen party is all females and a stag party is all males.

For both males and females a pre-marriage party usually is planned for a similar purpose. It helps calm the future couple’s nerves as well as to help them mourn the loss of singlehood as well as celebrate the beginning of married life. For both men and women this can be an exciting time that sometimes includes feelings of healthy sadness. Oh, perhaps there is one more difference that exists between hen and stag parties. When women dress up to celebrate and go out they are often thought of to be much prettier than men are. Likewise, most people would agree that female strippers are sexier than men strippers as well. This is supposed to be a joke, but it helps make light of the many stereotypes that exist between men and women.

Some people will have been disappointed by the conclusion brought about by the time they reach the end of this article. To those who are disappointed with what is said in this article, an apology is asked of you in advance. For those of you who felt mislead about what would be included in this article, you also get an advance apology as well. For those of you that understand that the purpose of this article is to make you understand that there are differences between hen and stag parties, but they are hardly noticeable these days…thank you. You understand that the purpose of this article is to dispel the common misconceptions and stereotypes of both men and women.

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Celebrity Chefs of the Food Network

It’s hard to imagine how televised cuisine exposition got by in the days before the Food Network. Founded in 1993 and owned by the E.W. Scripps Company, the Food Network is a round-the-clock American cable TV channel devoted to food: mostly cooking it, and eating it. In its first ten years, it has single-handedly given rise to a new class of television personality, known as the ‘celebrity chef’.

Habits of highly effective celebrity chefs: They give details about ingredients, and emphasize simplicity and utilize the natural flavor of ingredients. They give you useful cooking tips and explain why and how they do things. Some chefs tell you the recipe and give you a cooking formula. To many, knowing why you are doing something is just as important so that you can make up your own recipes.

They have their own style. Chefs who don’t have any particular cooking style or add their own individual mark to a dish don’t last long. Great celebrity chefs add some piece of themselves to a dish that marks it as their own unique creation, whether that is a particular cooking style, a form of presentation or combination of ingredients.

They add subtle variations to traditional recipes. In some ways this could be classed as one step before fusion cooking, or the mixing of different regional ingredients. Great chefs can modify what we are used to to add some new life and different flavors. This often means lighter, fresher variants of the dishes we already know..

Last, the great celebrity chefs show passion.

The top four chefs and their shows

The celebrity chefs that rise above the pack typically go on to establish commercial empires featuring their own line of cookware, cookbooks, utensils, and even produce or aprons. Many of the top chefs have several TV shows which have spun off from their first show.

Emeril Live Hosted by Emeril Lagasse, Emeril Live features many of the same elements as Emeril’s other show, ‘Essence of Emeril’. The show is traditionally taped in front of a lucky live audience in New York whom Emeril will sometimes allow to taste the food he prepares. Emeril Live began production in 1997, and in the same year it won a Cable ACE Award for “Best Informational Show”.

The show features a wide variety of cuisine from Cajun to stir-fry and often features well-known chefs appearing as guests. Celebrities that have appeared on the show include Charlie Daniels, Michael McDonald, Joe Perry, Sammy Hagar, Aretha Franklin and Jimmy Buffett. Without Emeril, we wouldn’t have catch phrases such as “Pork fat rules,” “Kick it up a notch,” and possibly the most well known phrase “Bam!”, which he uses when adding seasoning to the food he’s preparing.

So great is Emeril’s fame that you can hardly venture into a grocery store without seeing his face on a few labels of the products.

30 Minute Meals A Food Network show hosted by Rachael Ray, who debuted on Food Network in the fall of 2001. At the beginning of each episode, the unfailingly perky Ray opens with the greeting: “I’m Rachael Ray, and I make thirty minute meals. Now what that means is, in the time it takes you to watch this program, I’ll have made a delicious and healthy meal from start to finish.”

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Get Off To A Quick Start With Your Stained Glass Hobby

Stained Glass is an old and appreciated art form that can be interesting and exciting to learn. It can be challenging and rewarding at the same time, give you an artistic outlet, and can even result in a profitable business if you chose to take it that far. Stained glass design, repair, and installation is great because its a specialized business with very few companies offering the service. Whether you’re planning on just developing a hobby or perhaps take it to the next level, there are some basic tools that you will need to start your journey.

A good place to start would be to buy a beginner stained glass kit. These typically include an inexpensive selection of beginner tools that will get you started with your first project. Like anything, a lot of people will not make it past their first project so its a good idea to start small. These beginner kits give you everything you need to get started without having to make a large upfront investment so they are usually a perfect solution.

As you further your skill level, there are some great tools that will make your jobs a lot easier. A popular tool to buy early on is a stained glass grinder. Grinders are used to smooth out rough edges on the stained glass itself. Its a nice tool to have, but you’ll know when you’re ready for it.

I always recommend to my customers that they take a beginners stained glass class when they are just getting started. Check out your local community colleges or glass studio for class times and information. These are a great way to get the basics down and to get some teaching from a professional. Its probably the best investment you can make into your new hobby!

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Ancient Greek Food: Olives

Today, you go to the store and buy a little container of olives. You can get them in all different shapes sizes colors, and more. You can buy them with pimentos in them or not. Many wonder how this food became such an important part of Greek culture and large part of their diet.

Ancient Greeks used olives as there main source of fat instead of meat from animal because they thought it was an unhealthy way of getting fat, since the barbarians (non Greeks) ate that way. In actuality, the barbarians ate meat and their products such as milk and cheese because they were nomadic and had no way of growing an olive tree or preparing olives if they saw any.

Preserving olives was possible because there was salt everywhere! Since Ancient Greece was a huge island basically, salt was easily accessible and allowed them to preserve olives with ease.

To preserve their olives, first ancient Greeks would gather them while they where not ripe. They left them in eater that they changed every 12 hours with water that contains wood ash and then again cleared the water. It might have taken a week. To decrease the time sometimes they would cut them with a knife. They, oil would come forth from the olives but this was just used to help preserve them. They were then kept in wine, vinegar, and salty water.

Olive oil was created to help preserve the olives. Olive oil was a great source of the Ancient people’s diet because it was their main source of fat. You might think that fish was a main source of their diet, but these things were very expensive so common people mainly just had olive oil. It is not as it is today where people eat a large variety of food no matter who they are. Ancient Greece was a very socially unequal place.

If you ever dip bread in olive oil, you are carrying out the actions of an aristocratic meal. In ancient times, common Greeks mostly ate porridge and not bread for carbohydrates. Bread was a lot of work to make and was not a common food among them.

Today, olives are eaten by anyone who has a few bucks and can walk or drive to a store. Not so in the days of past. Still, ancient Greeks still figured they could turn tiny strange spherical objects on a tree into a delicious and nutritious food for all of the Mediterranean.

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Sweet Potato Casserole

The Best Sweet Potato Casserole

I know you have had sweet potato casserole, but if you are one of the few who haven’t had the opportunity to savor the flavor, I know you will appreciate this recipe. It comes from a long line of recipes that my mother had. Mama used to cook for all six of her children and her minister husband. On Sunday’s she would get up early and not only cook breakfasf for all of us, but she would cook “Sunday dinner”. Usually it would be a couple of fried chickens, mashed patotoes beans, cornbread or sometimes homemade biscuits.

I hope you enjoy this recipe.

Special Sweet Potato Casserole Scroll down the page for more sweet potato casserole recipes. · 4 cups Hot mashed sweet potatoes · Butter or margerine · 2 tablespoons Granulated sugar · 2 each Eggs — beaten · 1/2 cup Milk · 1/3 cup Pecans — chopped · 1/3 cup Packed brown sugar · 2 tablespoons Flour

Mix the sweet potatoes, 1/3 C butter and the granulated sugar. Beat in the eggs and milk. Pour into a greased 2 qt casserole. Combine the pecans, brown sugar and flour. Stir in 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potatoes and bake at 325 for 1 hour. SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE 2

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 3 large), scrubbed 2 large eggs, lightly beaten with a fork 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted plus more for the preparing the pan 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg Freshly ground black pepper 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Put the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and pierce each one 2 or 3 times with a fork. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until tender. Set aside to cool. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees F. Scoop the sweet potato out of their skins and into a medium bowl. Discard the skins. Mash the potatoes until smooth. Add the eggs, butter, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and pepper to taste. Whisk the mixture until smooth. Butter an 8 x 8-inch casserole. Pour the sweet potato mixture into the pan and sprinkle the top with the pecans. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until a bit puffy. Serve immediately.

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Nourishing Recipes For Little Ones

One of the things that parents spend much time thinking about is creating and preparing healthful recipes for their little ones. While it can sometimes be cumbersome to always prepare healthful recipes, especially when you have little time or are in a hurry after work, there are a variety of healthy recipes that you can create very simply, here are some of them.

Applesauce
Almost all kids enjoy applesauce and applesauce is deceptively easy to prepare and very delicious. All you need are 2 red apples, two teaspoons of sugar (brown sugar is fine), a couple of tablespoons of lemon and some cinnamon. Making applesauce is easy, just put your two red apples in a food processor, tossing out the core first. Process the apples and once they become chopped up into small pieces put them in a bowl; add your sugar, lemon juice and finally a few pinches of cinnamon. Voila, you have fresh and all natural apple sauce.

Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits
Here is a recipe that most everyone will love. Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits are very painless to prepare and you can create numerous types of parfaits just by selecting different varieties of fruits. For this recipe you can begin with about 8 ounces of yogurt, some chopped up strawberries and some fresh granola. Just mix the yogurt and strawberries together and add the granola to the top. You can simply improvise with this recipe, mixing in any type of fruits you like. In addition to adding granola, you can choose to add your favorite cereal, nuts, a few drops of chocolate or a gummy bear or two. This recipe takes only a second to make and will put a smile on all your little ones’ faces.

Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are tasty, fun to eat, and simple to prepare. They are also very healthy. You just need potatoes, some fresh milk, and a little butter. One of the ways to spruce up your mashed potatoes for little ones is to add a little food coloring, especially for the holidays. For instance, many people during St. Patrick’s Day make green mashed potatoes. For Halloween, you can mix in orange food coloring, etc. While you can simply spruce up mashed potatoes, this is one food that your kids will love because it tastes awesome. It is important to note that while you can buy mashed potato flakes, it is always better to use fresh potatoes.

Cinnamon French Toast
Are you seeking a healthy breakfast treat? French toast is it! You can prepare French Toast very simply, just take white bread, or almost any variety of bread and place it into a mixture of fresh milk and eggs that have been slightly beaten. Now cook it in a frying pan with either a drop of butter or cooking spray and voila, you have French Toast. Instead of using high sugar syrups or fatty butter, choose instead to sprinkle yummy powdered sugar. Many parents use fresh fruits as well, such as strawberries and raspberries to top off their creation.

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10 Great Uses for Baking Soda

Baking soda is affordable, widely available and great for many uses. It is commonly used for deodorizing your refrigerator, but did you know that you can also use it for heat rash and as a substitute for spackle?

Here are 10 great uses for baking soda.

1. Substitute for spackle: Mix a small amount of baking soda with a small amount of white glue to make a paste. Apply the paste to fill in the whole.

2. Heat rash: Take a lukewarm shower using a cleaning product such as Dove that does not contain soap. Towel dry and apply a paste of baking soda on any area that has heat rash. Leave the paste on as long as possible.

3. Vinyl flooring scuffs: To remove scuffs from vinyl flooring, put a little bit of baking soda on a damp sponge and rub away scuff.

4. Musty scent on clothes: If your clothes dryer turns off before your clothes are completely dry and your clothes smell musty, sprinkle baking soda on your clothes and place back in dryer. Turn the dryer back on and allow your clothes to completely dry.

5. Spraying cat: If Fluffy has sprayed your carpet, make a paste of baking soda and water, apply to area, cover, and leave at least three hours or overnight. After the treated area has dried, vacuum up the remaining powder.

6. Clean chrome: To clean the chrome in your house, rub chrome with baking soda and a dry cloth. The chrome will have a great shine!

7. Sunburn pain: To relieve the pain of sunburn, apply a paste of baking soda and water to soothe and cool the affected area.

8. Bathing suit mildew: If you cannot rinse or wash your bathing suit right away, place the bathing suit in a large zippered plastic bag filled with ¼ cup of baking soda. Shake the plastic bag well. The baking soda will keep the musty odor away by absorbing the moisture from the bathing suit.

9. Crayon on chalkboard: To remove crayon marks from a chalkboard, apply baking soda to a damp rag and clean the chalkboard. The baking soda will remove the crayon’s wax and make the board ready for chalk again.

10. Dishwasher smells while you’re away: Sprinkle a tad of baking soda in your dishwasher and leave the door open a little bit. This will keep your dishwasher from smelling musty when you return from that relaxing vacation to the beach!

As you can see from the above tips, there are many ways to use baking soda in your home. Don’t forget about the great deodorizing powders of baking soda. You can use baking soda in musty closets, diaper pails, trash cans, on pet beds, on carpets, and even in the laundry.

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A Chocolate Primer

A trip down the baking aisle in a grocery store presents the pastry chef with more options for chocolate than the candy counter. But if you’re stuck in a pinch, is it okay to substitute semi-sweet chips with a bittersweet bar? What can a glimpse at the list of ingredients tell you about a chocolate bar? Besides color, is there any real difference between white chocolate and milk chocolate? And why does European chocolate feel different in your mouth than American? After reading this article you will be able to answer these questions. However, we can’t guarantee that you’ll make a better chocolate mousse!

There are six basic kinds of chocolate. While all six are products of the cocoa bean, they differ immensely in flavor and purpose. Knowing how the cocoa bean is processed and used to make chocolate will explain the different kinds of chocolate, and also reveal why some brands are better quality than others.

Cocoa beans come from trees grown in the tropics of South and Central America and Africa. Pods containing the beans are harvested, and the beans together with the surrounding pulp are removed and placed in bins to ferment. After three to seven days the fermented pulp is dried quickly to avoid molding. Then the beans are roasted, graded and ground into a liquid called cocoa liquor. From the liquor, a fat called cocoa butter is extracted, leaving cocoa powder. These are the raw ingredients used to make chocolate.

Most people are surprised to learn that pure cocoa is very bitter. Cocoa must be sweetened with sugar, and sometimes vanilla and milk to produce that ever-popular chocolate flavor. The amount of cocoa in the blend determines the type of chocolate. Unsweetened or Baking Chocolate is the solid form of chocolate liquor. It is used in baking, when sugar or other sweeteners are called for in the recipe. Similarly, Bittersweet chocolate is primarily used for baking, with a minimum of 50% cocoa liquor. A third type of chocolate used in baking is Semi-Sweet, with a minimum of 35% cocoa liquor. Semi-sweet morsels are best known as the key ingredient in chocolate chip cookies.

While bittersweet has a stronger chocolate flavor than the sugary semi-sweet chocolate, these can sometimes be used interchangeably in recipes. In fact, since the amount of sugar is not regulated, what one manufacturer calls semi-sweet may be called bittersweet by another. Europeans, whose regulations are higher than Americans, tend to use more bittersweet. As a general guideline it’s best to note that the higher the content of chocolate liquor, the richer and more flavorful the chocolate.

Both bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolate are considered Dark Chocolate, which is any chocolate that does not contain milk or milk solids. American regulations set a minimum at 15% cocoa liquor in dark chocolate (European rules 35% minimum); however the finest dark chocolate has between 60-70%. There has been hype in recent years that the antioxidants present in dark chocolate may protect the heart; however, much of the processing destroys these healthy properties. Also, the high fat content in chocolate largely negates the benefits.

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Battlestar Galactica Movie Details Emerge

Good news for avid followers of the SciFi channel’s hit series, Battlestar Galactica. Although the much talked about BSG prequel, Caprica, has yet to be completed, confirmation has been made regarding the equally anticipated BSG made-for-television movie, which of course, will be shown in the SciFi channel. The movie has yet to be given a title.

Parts of the film will feature events that is set some time before the holocaust, which is why screenwriter and producer Ron Moore is quick to assure fans that each and every one of the original BSG characters have been written into the film. Moreover, the film will also cover the story of Commander Cain and his crew after they survive the holocaust. In the original series, Commander Cain was portrayed by the late actor Lloyd Bridges, and no official word has come out as to who will reprise the role for the movie.

Similar to the unfinished Caprica, which, to those who are new to the show, was a planet that the Cylons attacked and left in utter devastation, the movie will have a prequel feel to it, as it highlights the days leading up to the union of Battlestar Pegasus with the fleet. Moreover, in a crossover of sorts, the film is supposed to shed some light on some storylines on the upcoming fourth season of the show. To add to the relevance of the film to the show, Moore said that that film serves as additional episodes to the fourth season, which will start airing some time next year.

The link between the show and the film has certainly made it harder for die-hard fans and interested viewers alike to miss watching the ever-popular BSG franchise. The film is set to air at least 3 months before the fourth season, giving the audience some time to ponder on what they can possibly expect from the next BSG installment.

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Very Early Pregnancy Symptom before Period – These Symptoms May Indicate You are Pregnant

Very early pregnancy symptom before period are several symptoms masked as physical signs of discomfort that do not seem odd until seen through the prism of a pregnant state. These very early pregnancy symptoms vary from woman to woman, and some women do not experience them. For them, the missed period serves as the green light to signal that they may be pregnant. The home test kit and then a visit to the gynecologist are their positive means to test whether or not they’re pregnant.

But there are signs that you may be pregnant even before the commonly held indicator of a missed period. A catch-missed period does not always mean a pregnancy. Sometimes other changes in the body might result in you skipping menstruation or having it delayed by a while.

Sometimes you find out you are pregnant by being convinced that the changes you experience are very early pregnancy symptom before period. There is little evidence to support you right then, but you could be banking upon a few signs that gently nudge at your being pregnant. In the same way that your womb begins to pull at your stomach muscles to tell you there is a baby growing within you.

Often the first physical sign that you are pregnant may be swollen, tender breasts or nipples sore and hard that may even be painful to the touch. The reason why breasts become swollen is because they experience changes that prepare them for breastfeeding. There is an increased production of the hormones estrogen or progesterone and the breasts can be really tender if you are experiencing pregnancy for the first time. This is a very early pregnancy symptom before period.

The other sign is slight exhaustion and cramping, a sudden shooting pain in the legs that go away if you sit up for a while. The cramping may be followed by implantation bleeding, a very slight spot of bleeding that occurs when the fertilized egg implants itself in the uterine lining. Implantation bleeding usually occurs about 10 to 14 days after conception. It could be mistaken for menstruation itself but for the fact that the bleeding is very slight, and slight brown or spotty in appearance. This is the time when you cannot test for hormone levels in the blood because it is still too soon to tell for sure if you are pregnant. You also experience a rise in your BBT or Basal Body temperature during this period, a more accurate indicator of very early pregnancy symptom before period.

This is the time when food cravings hit at you when you are least expecting it. You may feel the urge to eat a variety of food that you did not know you ever had the taste for. Pickles, sugar cravings, or plain simple unhealthy high-carbohydrate snacks, there is a range of foods that you might want to taste at any given hour of the day (or night). That is why you ought to feast because this may be your baby’s signal to tell you about food he likes. Only remember to clamp on the appetite if this is accompanied by major bouts of throwing up. Your food cravings too may foretell that these are very early pregnancy symptoms before period.

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Factors resulting best Gourmet Coffee

If you are looking at the most famous and best gourmet coffees, then Jamaica Blue Mountain, Kona, and Costa Rican are most common trait. They are grown in volcanic mountain regions. Like the finest wine region of Italy and France, the best gourmet coffee have an areas were the coffee bean flavor thrives. The two most significant aspects of the best gourmet coffee are soil and altitude.

At higher elevations different factors come together in process of growing the best gourmet coffee. Late afternoon cloud cover defends the coffee plants from an undue amount of direct sunlight. The clouds comprises of moisture, which lightly waters the coffee plants through its leaves other than through its roots.

The best gourmet coffees are mainly rated with a SHB rating that means Strictly Hard Bean rating. The coffee bean full-grown at elevated altitudes is much stronger than those grown at lower elevations. This difference places the coffee bean in the group of the best gourmet coffee rating on world coffee markets.

The disadvantage of growing this coffee at much higher altitudes is the difficulty in agricultural process. Farms at this level are near the peaks of mountain formations that are very steep. You could even imagine the trouble of driving vehicles to these isolated locations with few paved roads. At times the ground is near about at a 45 degree angle making it very tricky to plant, farm, inspect and then pick the coffee beans from side of a mountain. More manual labor-intensive is necessary not only for farming but also for transporting the baskets important with the best coffee beans.

The distance of these locations also makes it a long and very difficult to transport them to the ports of allocation to world markets. The roads are frequently rough and stony winding up and down mountain sides and frequently beside an unsafe cliff. You could imagine the intrinsic danger concerned just in transporting a heavy truck load of the best gourmet coffee. The farmers would stride along side their ox drive cart dragging their payload. The farmers would paint multi-colored designs on the large wooden ox cart wheels that have become a sign of Costa Rican heritage even to this day.

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How to Negotiate Like A Pro In Long-term Negotiations.

Ever notice that negotiations usually go much better when there is a history of trust from previous successful negotiations? That is no accident. The good will that is built up over the years allows the other party to accept your positions at face value. However those negotiations can get flat and you might want to try something new as well. Here are some tips to build on that long term relationships during negotiations.

Look To The Past For Inspiration.
Usually I say look to the future, and that the past is called the past for a reason. That is because the usual negotiations are unsuccessful and the past may be a source of frustration and pain. However, when there is a history of successful negotiations, the negotiations themselves are a source for study. Try to analyze what has worked and what might need improvement. Even if you are pleased with the results, what could make the negotiations better? For example, you could ask questions like the following:
1. Was I prepared enough?
2. Did I give in too soon?
3. Were any mistakes made?
4. What worked and would I use that technique again?
5. What did not work and how can I improve?

Look To The Past for Pitfalls or Drawbacks

Even though successful negotiations predict further successful negotiations, negotiations with the same parties for several years do have some drawbacks or pitfalls. The negotiations can be predictable and even boring and the parties can become complacent. The parties anticipate what the other side is going to do so that there is no element of surprise. When it is time to close the deal, they are more likely just to split the difference. Negotiations repeated over the years can go flat. As they say, familiarity can breed contempt. If the parties know each other’s moves, they can predict where the negotiations are going. Sometimes the negotiators just go through the motions and don’t put much thought into the process. Each person has a role and they just go back and forth as they always have. Sometimes the expectations are fairly low and that can affect the bottom line

Try Something New
You might want to assign some different people to the negotiating team or pick a new chief negotiator to shake things up. You might want to add a new formula for the payment of fees. You might try to ask for something new this year, something you really want. You might start in a different order. Start with the important items if you have been starting with the easy items. Maybe you want to start all over again and start from scratch and build a new contract. This is fairly drastic but might be worth a try. If you are happy with last year’s contract, then you might want to think of some brand new provisions. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

Be Prudent

Even though you may want to try something new, be prudent on how you implement it. Don’t risk everything just for the sake of trying something new. Experiment by trying one or two minor changes and see how it works. Don’t allow years of successful negotiations to be jeopardized for the sake of innovation. You will need to assess the situation to see if the tried and true is still working or whether the parties have become complacent and need some new strategies at the negotiation table.

In conclusion, a long term negotiations are usually built on mutual trust and will likely predict good future negotiations. However, it will up to you to decide whether the parties are complacent and caught up in a routine or are already at their peak performance. You may have to try something new to put some new zest in the negotiations. Or you may want to continue the techniques that have worked in the past. The point is that there should be a review to determine the strategies for future negotiations.

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