While traditional wisdom tells us that we should eagerly catch every opportunity that comes our way, playing a little hard to get has its advantages. Studies have shown that opportunities are seen to be more valuable as they become less available, according to Robert Cialdini, a leading expert on influence, who said “What the scarcity principle says is that people are more attracted to rare opportunities.”

Appearing available can work against you, according to Jeremy Nicholson, a social psychologist. If you're excited about a work opportunity, it indicates that you are in low demand.

“Making something harder to get,” Dr. Nicholson said, “tends to increase at least the perception of value.” If you are meeting with hiring managers or potential clients, Dr. Nicholson recommends that responding in a way that respects their interest without being too eager. Dr. Nicholson advises, with responses like: “I do have a couple of other projects to deal with. However, I could do this for you if you want.”

“It's easy to become excited when an opportunity presents itself,” Ms. Ryan, founder of Human Workplace, said, “but remember that your power in any negotiation is related to your ability to walk away. Don't accept an offer before fully considering the opportunity.” Once you have interest, turn that into diligence. Ms. Ryan recommends reading up on the organization from third-party perspectives, and checking out job-search websites to see what employees and ex-employees say about it. Keep in mind: The goal is to approach any negotiation cautiously and with a clear head.

Appearing less available isn't about limiting our enthusiasm, but about trusting in our own self-worth so we can be proactive, experts say. This means mindfully transforming our excitement into strategy. “Emphasizing the uniqueness of your resources and your cooperative approach can help you more quickly advance your goals,” said Shirli Kopelman, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

Virtual (虚拟) Teams

Virtual teams are a great way to enable teamwork in situations where people are not sitting in the same office at the same time. Such teams are now widely used by companies and organizations to cut business costs. This is particularly so for businesses that use virtual teams to build global presence, or need less common skills or knowledge from people who are unwilling to travel.

Virtual teams are governed by the same basic principles as traditional teams.【小题1】. It is the way the team members communicate. They rely on special communication channels enabled by modern technologies, such as emails, faxes, and teleconferences, and alike. Due to more limited communication channels, the success of virtual teams is much more sensitive to the type of project the group works on, what people are selected, and how the team is managed.

【小题2】 One challenging case is the projects that rely heavily on integrated work. That is to say, when each person’s work depends significantly on what someone else is doing at the same moment, like in a sports team, there is an ongoing heavy exchange of information in real time, and the tasks have to go through a strict order within a short time.

Not everyone can perform well in a virtual team environment. 【小题3】 Another important quality is communication skills. The team members must be able to communicate clearly and positively.

Managers of virtual teams need to pay much more attention to having clear goals, performance standards, and communication rules. People have various assumptions on what to expect from each other. 【小题4】.

One of the biggest challenges of virtual teams is building trust between the team members. Trust is important for unblocking communication between members and increasing motivation of each person in the team. The issue of trust needs special attention at any stage of team existence.