Never give up something, without asking for something in return.

TP: Never give up something, without asking for something in return.

Although it seems deceptively simple, it’s actually quite powerful. Here’s why.

If someone asks you for something and you just give it to them, (even if what they’re asking for is relatively insignificant), you create a couple of problems for yourself.

First, if you immediately agree to an unconditional concession, the other party is almost certain to ask for something else.

Why wouldn’t they? After all, there was no cost to getting the first concession.

Second, and equally problematic, if you agree immediately and unconditionally to a concession, the other party is unlikely to place much value on whatever you just gave them. After all, if it wasn’t a big deal for you, why should it be important to them?

Whenever possible, concessions should be conditional. Meaning, “If I could do that, would you be willing to ... ”

This accomplishes two things: It shows the other party there’s a cost associated with asking for things; it anchors the value of whatever it is they’re asking you for.

JB: So to become a masterful negotiator, one must ...

TP: Constantly refine and hone your techniques. We negotiate every day for our companies, for ourselves, with our families, etc. That means we get lots of opportunities to practice the skill sets we’ve been talking about.

You can practice in business, or even when shopping for a car or furniture. Not only will these skills become second nature, you’ll find yourself getting better deals!

In our culture, we tend to think of a negotiation as confrontational. It’s really more of a game ... with rules, strategies, and escalating levels of competence.

Since we’re playing this game for the rest of our lives, you might as well get really good at it!

To escalate your game, head tomyyukon.com.