Andy Brough's lastest keynote presentation is called, "Don't Judge a Bull by His Horns!" It has nothing to do with farming, or Pretoria based rugby supporters and everything to do with negotiation from an African perspective... by discovering the principles of Lobola and how the bride price is negotiated.

The band Juluka is probably one of South Africa’s most famous musical exports. In 1976 Johnny Clegg and Sipho Mchunu recorded their debut album, released three years later as “Universal Men”.  The album ends with a meditative, lyrical song that reworks an ancient Zulu war refrain. Mchunu’s superb vocal ability and Clegg’s undeniable talent on the mouthbow – one of the world’s oldest stringed instruments- combine to deliver a very evocative interpretation of “Inkunzi Ayihlabi Ngokumisa.”   The title refers to a Zulu idiom that in direct translation would equate to,  “A bull doesn't stab by means of the way in which its horns have grown." Loosely translated this could be seen interpreted as , “the strength of the bull is not determined by the size of his horns.”  An Nguni cattle farmer knows his herd intimately and after watching how each one interacts, would be able to identify the potential dangers, strength, fertility potential and economic value of each bull. The expression has come to be known simply as, “don’t judge a bull by his horns.” Many English speakers would hear this idiom and respond with “Yes, we have a saying like that- “don’t judge a book by its cover.”

But what has this got to do with negotiation, I hear you say. Visit the section on keynotes to find out. . .