7 Proven Ways to Master Negotiation and Get the Best Deals Every Time

What's up, Believe Nation? It's Evan. My one word is believe, and I believe in you. I believe that you've got some insane potential inside you that I want to see burst out into the world to have a big impact for you, your family, your community, and everybody around you. So to help you on your journey, in today's video I'm talking about 7 ways to improve your negotiation skills. So negotiating is part of being an entrepreneur. There's a lot of deals that we have to work out with our customers, with our suppliers, with our employees, with our investors. There's always deals that have to happen, and today I'm going to give you 7 ways to improve your negotiation skills to get the best deal possible. Tip number 1 is build emotional equity, and this actually happens before you sit down and do the negotiation. The more people know you, like you, trust you, feel like they can connect with you— besides just getting to a meeting and sitting down and getting right to business, the better the chances they're gonna give you a good deal, you're gonna be able to work something out. I hate showing up to any kind of negotiation and it's right to business, I have no context on who they are, we don't know anything about each other. And so what can really help you get a really great deal is to do the prep work in advance, try to get to know the person a little bit more in advance, try to help them out with something that they're working on in advance so you build up your emotional equity with them, so they like you, so they know you, so they trust you before you even walk into the room. And you position yourself for success. Number 2 is envision how the conversation is going to go. And so when you get into negotiation, you never quite know how everything's gonna play out, but I always have a game plan, right? It's good to have a game plan going in. Imagine what it's gonna be like when you sit down, what you're gonna say, what topics you're gonna cover, how you generally see a conversation going. When you can envision that in advance, and it's not just I envision it, so it's going to happen. It's important that you have some kind of game plan going in. And so what I'll do before going into an important negotiation, even sitting down talking to my instructors here at Toronto Dance Salsa, before going into a meeting with any of them where we might be negotiating something, I've played out the conversation a few times in my head. How do I want to start? What questions do I want to ask? What are some likely answers that will come back? If they ask me this, What am I gonna say? If they say this, what am I gonna say? It doesn't mean I'm gonna predict everything that comes out, you never will, but being able to role play a little bit, at least with yourself, Alex loves role playing with me, so he loves having somebody else to role play against. I just like doing it with myself, I don't like role playing with somebody in front of me, so like, whatever works for you. But that idea of playing out a scenario in advance, envisioning how the conversation might go, and what your answers and replies would be, can really, really, really help. So again, before you even get to the meeting, you wanna set yourself up for success by envisioning how the conversation's going to go and having a game plan. Tip number 3 is listen. This is so important. If you want to be a good negotiator, if you want to get what you want, it also comes from helping the other person get what they want. And so it starts by listening. Two really important things about listening. One, you're getting clues. You're looking for what they care about, what they really value, and you're trying to find a way to work it out, right? If you go in with the approach like, "I'm gonna win and they're gonna lose," that is not a fantastic mindset. You're looking for ways that you can both win. You're looking for ways to get what you want and for them to get what they want. And in order to understand what they want, you have to get it out of them. You gotta listen, right? There's the expression of, "You have two ears and one mouth for a reason." You want to be listening. Listen, listen, listen. Understand what they want. The side benefit of it too is that you're building rapport. The more you listen, the more you're taking in the information they're saying, the more they feel connected to you. People like to talk. They like to talk about themselves. And so the more that you let them talk about themselves, the more they're thinking, "Huh, I like this person. I vibe with this person. This person gets me." And all you're really doing is listening. And so again, the more you build up that trust and confidence and friendship, the more likely they're going to want to do business with you and find a deal that you guys can work towards together. So listen. Tip number 4 is know your outcome. It's really helpful for you to know what it is that you want coming out of this negotiation, right? So back to tip number 2 about envision where the conversation is going to go. Have an understanding of what you want out of it. It doesn't mean that that's exactly what you're going to get, and maybe some new opportunities get uncovered along the path. But to go in knowing what it is that you want, what's the ideal case scenario, and then what would you settle for, like what is, what is the minimum case scenario that you want out of that situation. Having that clear picture is really, really important so you can work towards it. You don't need to necessarily lead with it right away, say this is what I want, but to know in your head what it is that your outcome is going to be, and then to figure out what a desired outcome is for them, and then try to find a place for both of you to be able to match because there'll be some things that you really care about that they don't care so much about and some things that they really care about that you can live with not having. And so figuring out that ideal outcome for both of you is where the real negotiations win. Tip number 5 is be flexible in your approach. So we know our outcome, we're a little bit stubborn on that, like this is what we need to get out of this deal, but how we get there might change, right? No matter how much you plan, no matter how much you've worked in advance to try to figure out how the conversation's going to go, there's still going to be a lot of twists and turns. And if you are fixed on this is the only way to go out and get this goal, then it's going to be really hard to get a deal that works for both of you, right? And so just like in entrepreneurship, you have a mission, you have a vision, you have your values, you're stubborn on that. Like, this is the big thing I'm trying to build, but the how to get there, the execution can change, can flow, right? You're gonna have to go with what the market wants and make adjustments along the way. The business plan that you have never ends up being the business plan that works, but the vision that you have is the one you're constantly working towards. And so same thing in negotiation. You have this goal, you know what you want, this is your outcome, you envision how the conversation will go, but how to get there will change and be flexible. And almost always, almost always, at every negotiation I managed to bring something out from somebody, something that they care about that wasn't on the table before and that I can live with, right? Like, you're always gonna have price or money as one of the variables in most negotiations, but there's always other things that people care about that you may not care so much about, and things again that you care about that they may not care so much about. And that's where you need to have the conversation to unlock those things that they really want that could add value to them that for you is really easy to give up. And so, as an example, I was negotiating with somebody who wanted to join my team and really cared about their title, right? It wasn't in the first discussion, but they really wanted to control what they called themselves, you know, what their position would be, what the name would be. I don't care what the name— you call yourself Chief Smurf, I don't care what you call yourself, as long as it's not super confusing, I guess, for the brand, right? Don't call yourself founder or CEO or something. But they wanted to have a creative title for themselves, and that was important to them. I don't care. Call yourself whatever you want, right? So just understanding that makes them happy, gives them something, takes something off the table that really gives them a win, where for me it doesn't make a difference. And there'll be other things that you want that have high perceived value for you that they won't care about, right? And so being able to uncover as many of these things as possible, especially on their side, like you want your outcome, this is what you're trying to get, there may be some other wins you can bring out. Understanding what they want and will pay for, and then giving them the other things that have a high perceived value to them but doesn't actually cost you that much on your side, and being flexible in that approach can really help you seal the deal and get a big win. Tip number 6 is believe in your position. A lot of times with negotiations and conversations, it's the people who are most confident in the position that wins. If I'm certain that I'm bringing a lot of value, if I'm certain that what I'm asking for is fair and is right, right, if I have that level of absolute belief and certainty, then I will sway them. I don't even need to use specific words or convince them like, "You need to listen to me," right? Just my inner belief that what I'm doing is worth it. And so many times, especially entrepreneurs, we tend to underprice ourselves. We tend to go into, a negotiation with a client, as an example, and you're bidding on a project, and it'll come in and say, you know, this is worth $10,000. Like, you go in and say, I'm gonna charge $10,000. But if you go in saying, it's gonna be $10,000, they know it's not worth it, right? They know that you're hesitating, they know that you don't feel confident in your work, even though maybe the value you're bringing is worth 3 times that amount. You're underpricing yourself because you don't actually believe in the value of your work. And just believing in your position. You get what you believe you're worth in life and in business. And so if you are going in asking for $10,000 but you believe you're really worth $3,000, you're going to get down to $3,000, right? And so having that confidence in your position, knowing that this is what I'm worth, knowing that you're bringing a lot of value to them without rubbing it in their face, without saying like, I'm bringing you so much. May I have your attention, please? Fire alarm! So we just had a fire alarm here, and part of being an entrepreneur is rolling with the punches, just like in any good negotiation. And so understanding that I believe what I'm worth— this video is worth this much, what I'm bringing, the value proposition is worth this much money— and having confidence that this is actually what you can bring is really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really important. "Fire alarm!" All right, fire alarm is done. Let's keep going. Tip number 7 is be willing to walk away. No matter what negotiation you have, you need to figure out, like I said before, your ideal outcome and what your minimum requirement is gonna be, and if you don't hit that, then you have to be willing to walk away. The strength comes from the ability to walk away, not as a, just a negotiation tactic and threaten leaving, It's really strong if you actually are going to walk away. And there are going to be some deals that you just can't accept. Some deals that just, maybe they don't pay you enough. Some deals that just the terms aren't good enough. You know, as you build your business to a certain level, you're not going to be able to take every single deal that comes your way. And so understanding what your walkaway point is. There are some easy ones, like if they're against your values. Sometimes they might pay you a lot of money, but it's against your values and you don't want to go off and do that. A lot of times I've run into some deals where it just doesn't feel right at the beginning. You really want it to work out. Just culturally, what they want and what you want just doesn't feel right, and you do it anyway, and then you regret it. Those deals don't take. When you get that gut feeling, walk away. Don't take it. But in terms of the other terms, it doesn't have to be a threat. It doesn't have to be negative. It doesn't have to be yelling at them. You have to have at some point what your walkaway breakpoint's gonna be if you don't hit that minimum standard. Don't fall into the trap of doing work that is below what you feel is worth your time doing, and then you resent that person, you resent yourself, you don't do a fantastic job on the project. Know what your walkaway point is and stick to it. Now one last bonus point that I wanna add on here is I think it's really important to be careful who you're negotiating with and also leaving something on the table. If I'm negotiating around my internet package or some giant corporation, then I will negotiate and try to get everything I can because I know they don't care about me, because I know I'm never going to talk to that person again, because I'm just a number and I get lost in the shuffle. And so negotiate and get as big a deal as you can when you're dealing with giant corporations. But when you're dealing with entrepreneurs, I'm really careful and I always try to leave something on the table for them. I want them feeling happy with the deal because I know that that extra $100 or $1,000 or whatever it's going to be can be really important to them and can make the difference between them delivering a fantastic project that they love and they're really happy with or not. And so what I would hate to do is negotiate somebody all the way down to the bone, right? If you know entrepreneurs, as an example, always underprice themselves, use that to your advantage, you get a 30% off deal and you've trapped them into this box that then they're stuck in and they resent it and they have to do this work but they don't really want to and they don't feel happy about the deal, that's not somebody who you want working on your projects, right? Like, yes, maybe you got the best financial deal possible, but I want their hearts and their souls into it as well, not just their minds. And so I'm very careful when negotiating with entrepreneurs and smaller businesses not to try to take everything, try to leave something on the table so that everybody's happy and they are on board with what we're trying to do. So just be careful when you're negotiating. Pay close attention to who you're dealing with. It's about both of you winning and not just you winning and them losing. So thank you guys so much for watching. I made this video because Amanda Anima asked me to. If there's a topic you'd like me to cover in a future 7 Ways video, check out the link in the description. You can go to that video, leave it in the comments what you want me to talk about, and I might just make a video for you. I'd also love to know what did you take from this video? Which lesson hits you the hardest that you're going to apply immediately somehow to your next negotiation? Did I miss an 8, 9, 10 that you wanna add to the list? Share your thoughts down in the comments below. I'm really excited to hear from you. I also wanna give a quick shout out to Dodie. Dodie, thank you so much for picking up a copy of my book, Your One Word, taking a picture, posting it to your online accounts. I really, really appreciate the support and I hope you enjoyed the read. Thank you guys again for watching. I believe in you. I hope you continue to believe in yourself and whatever your one word is. Much love. I'll see you soon. Let me give you the one word secret to happiness. One word. This is all you need to be happy. The most important word ever.

If you had to think of one word that's most important to you or that sums you up or that would be kind of like a little beacon.

Hey, Believe Nation. If you want to know what the most important one word is for Tony Robbins, Gary Vaynerchuk, Oprah Winfrey, Will.i.am, and Howard Schultz, I have a very special secret video for you. Check the description for details.