Behavioural Neuroscience and Negotiating with Difficult People

Uncertainty, inflation and cost-of-living pressure have a side effect that creeps up on all of us, often unnoticed: a rise in three chemicals that enter the bloodstream and shape how we think, feel and act. Most of us know them by name: adrenaline, cortisol and dopamine. The result is that more people are behaving more quickly and impulsively, taking offence more readily, and becoming more reactive, rushed, edgy and impatient. In short, more people are harder to deal with, in the boardroom and everywhere else.

So the question on many people’s lips is: how do we deal with difficult people?

In this webinar, Allan Parker addresses that question in an unusual yet obvious way, with simple and practical skills you can take away and test straight away, whether in the boardroom, the office, the factory or at home. Drawing on the latest science of the brain, Allan explains what is happening in a nervous system under pressure and how to use that knowledge to stay calmer, think more clearly and negotiate better.

Attendees will learn:

• What adrenaline, cortisol and dopamine do to judgement, patience and behaviour under sustained pressure;
• Why difficult behaviour is often a nervous system response rather than a character flaw, and what that changes about how you respond;
• Practical tools for staying calmer during challenging conversations and meetings;
• How to calm a nervous system, yours first and then others’, so that a negotiation can move forward; and
• The latest science on looking after your brain so it stays healthy for longer.

Allan brings a rare combination of scientific depth, negotiating experience and humour to this topic. Directors and executives will leave with skills they can apply in their next difficult conversation.

About the Presenter

Allan Parker OAM is a Micro-Behavioural Neuroscientist, International Negotiator and Educator. He works as a negotiator and facilitator of large-scale multi-party negotiations and disputes within government and private sector organisations, and trains in negotiation, dispute prevention and healthy, considered conversations. Allan has presented, facilitated and moderated in over 60 countries around the world, and has had participants from 192 countries in his audience at one time at the United Nations World Investment Forum. He was a writer and professor on the Master's Program of Dispute Resolution at the School of Law and Business, University of Western Sydney, where he was appointed Adjunct Professor for his contribution to the field. In 2012, Allan wrote Australia's first degree in negotiation, and in 2020 he received the Order of Australia Medal for his contribution to business and dispute resolution. He is the author of The Negotiator's Toolkit and the best seller Switch on Your Brain, and co-author of Beyond Yes: Negotiating and Networking. In September 2024 he released his latest book, Would Could Might: The Art and Science of Speculative Thinking. Beyond his professional achievements, Allan has been a scratch golfer and has run 16 marathons and 11 ultra marathons, including two 24-hour events.

When

Friday 09 October 2026 @ 1pm - 2pm (AEDT)

What is included:

Everyone who registers for the webinar (even if you can’t make the live stream) will receive access to:

• A recording of the webinar*
• A PDF copy of the slide deck

*for up to one month after the live webinar date

Pricing
All amounts are in AUD

Individual (1 - 3 people): $79.00 per person
Whole board (4 - 10 people): $280.00 for the group
Max. group size of 10 ppl per group registration. Must all be from the same organisation