than that.
One of the easiest ways to bend your counterpart’s
reality to your point of view is by pivoting to nonmonetary
terms. After you’ve anchored them high, you can make
your offer seem reasonable by offering things that aren’t
important to you but could be important to them. Or if their
offer is low you could ask for things that matter more to you
than them. Since this is sometimes difficult, what we often
do is throw out examples to start the brainstorming process.
Not long ago I did some training for the Memphis Bar
Association. Normally, for the training they were looking
for, I’d charge $25,000 a day. They came in with a much
lower offer that I balked at. They then offered to do a cover
story about me in their association magazine. For me to be
on the cover of a magazine that went out to who knows how
many of the country’s top lawyers was priceless advertising.
(Plus my mom is really proud of it!)
They had to put something on the cover anyway, so it
had zero cost to them and I gave them a steep discount on
my fee. I constantly use that as an example in my
negotiations now when I name a price. I want to stimulate
my counterpart’s brainstorming to see what valuable
nonmonetary gems they might have that are cheap to them
but valuable to me.
- WHEN YOU DO TALK NUMBERS, USE ODD ONES
Every number has a psychological significance that goes
beyond its value. And I’m not just talking about how you
love 17 because you think it’s lucky. What I mean is that, in