If you always assume others
are out to get you, you will soon get the reputation of being
difficult to deal with if not hostile. Your colleagues
and clients will avoid you. If you always assume others
are honest and fair in their dealings with you, you will soon
be out of business. The most effective strategy is
called Tit for Tat. There are three principles to Tit
for Tat.
1. Always begin by
assuming the other party will cooperate and be honest
2. If you find you've
been cheated or treated unfairly, THE NEXT TIME ONLY respond
'Tit for Tat' by some form of negative reinforcement
3. Resume cooperating
again for all further dealings.
The funny thing about Tit
for Tat strategy is that you can only tie a competitor in a
single competition, you cannot beat him, and he can beat
you. But against many competitors and over the long
haul, you will be beat less than anyone else and come out
ahead of any other single competitor.
In other words, Tit for Tat
is a 'bad' strategy for a single encounter but the best
strategy for the long haul. The best strategy for the
single encounter is lying through your teeth and cheating
blind. You may have guessed, these patterns are designed
for the long haul.
