There is a simple key to better negotiating. The key is communication!
Whether you are looking to get a raise, change jobs, buy a car, or buy or sell a house there is one tool that you are missing that is keeping you from getting what you want.
You go into negotiations with a lot of emotion, nerves, a plan, and you think you have all the right words to win your case. Except your emotions end up getting the better of you.
You already lost before you even started negotiating.
The biggest key to winning your negotiations is…LISTENING!
Before you go into the negotiations you should be thinking about what the other side wants. That doesn’t mean you’ll give in to what they want. It helps set your mindset and see things from the other’s viewpoint.
Listen.
Actively listen to what the other side is telling you and then you are armed with everything you need to win your negotiations.
I recently completed a commercial lease for a client. When I met with the listing agent for the space she told me the owners prefer to provide free rent over tenant improvements. She said this in a way that would have been missed had I not been actively listening to her. Most times we are too concerned about what we are going to say next. We’re not listening to the other side.
When it came time to negotiate for my client we decided on a number for the landlord to pay for tenant improvements and the amount of years they wanted to lease.
We received a counter offer with a longer lease term. My client was fine with the longer lease term, but the listing agent didn’t need to know that. So, I told my client that if the landlord would like a few more years on the lease then why not get more free rent out of them? Remember when I heard ‘the landlord prefers to provide more months of free rent than more dollars in tenant improvements’?
We countered with a bunch more months free on the lease and it was agreed upon by the landlord!
Just from active listening I was able to set up this commercial client with almost 1 full year free of paying their lease for their business. Plus, I was able to secure the landlord paying a significant amount of money to improve the space for this new business.
You can win all of your negotiations and walk away the winner, but first you need to stop thinking about what you’re going to say next and start actively listening to what the other side has to say.
This goes for all business owners too! Listen to what your client has to say and that will guide you on how to win.
It works in every negotiation!
The key is simple, but hard to do.
Actively listen.
