WINNERS WHO TAKE ALL RARELY KEEP IT

"It is better to rise from life as from a banquet -- neither thirsty nor drunken."

Aristotle 

3rd century BC Greek philosopher

And in negotiation too.

Get too much and you may soon lose it all.

Something for Everyone

"Never contend with a man who has nothing to lose."

Baltasar Gracian

17th century Spanish philosopher

And never enter agreements favorably only to you.

One way or the other you will pay.

Management: Put It In Writing?

"A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on."

Samuel Goldwyn

What else do we need in writing besides critical elements of a contract?

Arguably a manager's instructions to a subordinate could (or should) easily include as much detail as would be found in any buy/sell agreement, but no one I know puts as much detail into their management directives as they would in a contract.

Is the fact that they don't the reason things often don't get done as the manager expects?

At what point should a manager's instructions be documented in writing? How much detail is needed?

Or is verbal direction between a manager and their subordinates always enough?