Three Bulls in the Ring

COURSE DESCRIPTION

“Three Bulls in a Ring” is a concept developed around 2009 when working with colleges and universities to secure external funding for course development and student engagement. What I encountered was that many of the institutions that I worked with, had little regard for the funding agency’s needs. In addition, they were writing proposals that gave them little personal satisfaction beyond being awarded. From this experience, I envisioned an endless dance of passionate egos, trying to win a fight largely influenced by others. With that, I developed a concept that would not only illustrate this dance, but also assist each entity with getting what they needed in order to feel successful.

In some negotiations, win/win does not feel like a win. Sometimes one of the entities feels slighted, even though they got what they wanted/accepted. Therefore, “Three Bulls in a Ring” works to shape not only the outcome, but the perception. The concept exists whenever you enter into collaboration with two or more entities. The appropriate view is hierarchical, with yourself existing at the bottom and the funder, or person being the majority stakeholder at the top. Starting at the bottom, or your level, each entity’s needs and desires must fit perfectly into the needs and/or desires of the entity directly above. The object of this exercise is to ensure harmony, by making sure that all wants/needs are met.

With “Three Bulls in a Ring”, Bull 1 has a need to feel like their goals are understood and supported. If Bulls 2 develops a strategy that validates Bull 1’s feeling, they put themselves in a position to receive what they are after. By embracing and supporting Bull 2’s strategy, Bull 3 is compensated and given additional opportunities.

The real key to “Three Bulls in a Ring” is the ability to make the person, organization, agency, etc. that you support, look good in the eyes of the person, organization, agency, etc., that they support. Our activities should not attempt to supersede or outshine those of the bull above us

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• 5 lectures and 1 hour of content!
• Lecture Quizzes after each session.
• Method to help solidify successful working relationships.