Cut-Me-Own-Throat sevitzdotcom

Negotiating. Bargaining. Haggling. Wheel-a-dealing. These are skills I don't have. Let me give you an example of how I haggle.

meHow much is that doggy in the window
seller75 spondoolies mate
meI'll give you £100 for it
sellerSold!
meBlast!

I just am not a negotiator. I canâ€™t bargain. I feel uncomfortable trying to haggle. It's just not me. I'm happy to a fair price, even if what I think is a fair price is actually not all that fair. This is why I shop more in shops than in markets. Also I donâ€™t like shopping in an environment where people are yelling at me or pointing at my big neon "sucker" sign.

This same problem resurfaces itself when I try sell something. I'll do some research as to what a fair value for the product is and I'll offer it for sale at that price. I've noticed the first thing many people do is knock off some value and offer me less for the items. Which would be all good and well if I over inflated my price to account for this, but I don't. I offer things at a fair price.

Now if you think my price is too high thatâ€™s different. Then to tell me that you think the goods are worth less (and why) and I might consider dropping my price. It's a demand economy so if I canâ€™t sell it I will probably drop my price too. But the automatic response by a list of people I know too offer me less or haggle always puts me on the back foot. I simply donâ€™t like it.

For some people, everything is a deal, everything is scam, everything has an angle. I know someone who is always offering a cut for favours. This isn't me. I like money as much as the next guy, but I don't want to get involved all the time. If I see a good opportunity I may take it, but making a few bucks here and there doesnâ€™t interest me. And I do favours for free.

As an aside, anyone want to buy my Firewire drive bay, with 2x 40gb drives and a Firewire PC Card? Going for the bargain price of £120 ... I'll knock a fiver off if you can tell me where the title comes from.

15 Comments

13 Jan, '04 5:09 PM

1. lolly

Its blatantly a new take on good ol’ C.M.O.T. dibbler.

Dont want the firewires though ;-)

13 Jan, '04 5:32 PM

2. razorhead

does the drive come inna bun?

14 Jan, '04 7:46 AM

3. steve

I will give you 5p if you fix your comments so I don’t have to enter my details each time ;)

14 Jan, '04 9:28 AM

4. steve

Woo, Hoo. Looks like I owe you 5p.

14 Jan, '04 9:32 AM

5. Adrian

I didn’t actually fix anything or change anything. But you are welcome to send me 5p.

14 Jan, '04 10:21 AM

6. steve

Hmm strange. The day I decide to remark on the problem it goes away? I will donate the 5p to a good cause.

14 Jan, '04 10:22 AM

7. steve

And, yes, before anyone pipes up, I did have selected “Remember personal info? YES” at all times.

14 Jan, '04 10:23 AM

8. Adrian

You can donate the 5p to the “Bring back beef sausages” fund

14 Jan, '04 11:15 AM

9. Karen

This whole beef sausages thing, Adrian, is a prime example of why all religions are evil. Beef sausages are almost always* too small and thin, and very poor reflections of their pork equivalents. As for chicken sausages, well the very idea is almost as laughable as veggie sausages.

*There’s a shop in Worcester market hall, though, that does the most amazing beef and garlic sausages, which blows my argument right out of the water.

14 Jan, '04 11:23 AM

10. Adrian

I want beef hotdogs sausages, which are damn impossible to find easily.

Beef boerawors. A South African not small not think and fantastic sausage.

The problem is not that religions are evil, but that England is pig country …

14 Jan, '04 11:43 AM

11. Karen

Oh, the sausage shop in Worcester does boerwors too. Do you want me to find out their details in case they do mail order?

14 Jan, '04 11:47 AM

12. Adrian

I can get boerwors and beef sausages in London thanks. The problem is not that it is impossible to get (say like Cuban Cigars in the USA) but that it’s a mission to get and when I am at the local Sainburys I have a choice of pork sausages, the occasional lamb sausages or truly appalling beef sausages and no beef hot dog sausages anywhere (like the movies)

14 Jan, '04 12:43 PM

13. steve

I feel you have found a gap in the market. Dump the day job and become Beef Sausage King of Britain.

14 Jan, '04 4:19 PM

14. Lisa

Actually, turkey sausages are rather nice. We’ve served them to friends/family several times and they had no idea (specifically, these are the ones from Tesco and Safeway). I agree about veggie sausages, though - dreadful. I’ve not found a decent non-pork hotdog here, and used to love the Butterball turkey hotdogs we got in North America. :(

08 Nov, '04 7:33 AM

15. AJ

One for a fiver and three for twenty, a nice deal ey?