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There is a song titled The First Noel. I wish there had been on called The First Negotiation. There are just too many syllables in the word Negotiation to have it appear in a song title.

Even though there is no song about this, I bet it happened this way.

Eve offered Adam a deal. If you take a bite of this juicy, delicious apple, I’ll take a romantic walk with you in the moonlight by the river.

God was taking it all in. He had explained the rules of Paradise to the first couple. There was only one teeny, tiny restriction. The rest was fair game. It must have resembled a conglomeration of Disneyworld, Epcot Center and Universal Studios but with no lines.

The regulations were similar to the instructions we try to give to children: at our house. I refer to it as the Principle of Actions and Consequences.

If you do what I say, no one, including me, will get hurt. However, if you think for one minute that I do not have eyes in the back of my head, and you go ahead and break the rules, you will be punished. Quickly and fairly.

The second negotiation was probably Adam and God going at it. Yes, Adam attempted the impossible: he tried to negotiate with God.

Adam hoped that God would let him start the day over. A day without apple fritters, apple pie, apple Kugel, apple dumplings, apple cobbler, caramel apples or baked apples.

Not even a nibble of an apple would ever cross Adam’s lips again, he promised God. I’m like Adam. I pray for do-over’s. Golfers call it a Mulligan. Friends and lovers speak of giving love a second chance.

I learned that taxes are negotiable. The lesson took 7 years, reasonable lawyer’s fees and buckets of tears in front of the IRS officer.

What are the keys to a great negotiation? Stay tuned. I will share them with you. I have some wonderful success stories from some of my Negotiation Workshop attendees to report.