Does negotiation feel intimidating to you?
Here’s how to make it easier.
When professionals approach me for coaching on getting a pay rise, one of the things we focus on is getting them comfortable with negotiating.
Unfortunately, we don’t negotiate much in our day-to-day life.
Yet we expect to be great negotiators when we make a big ask in our careers.
So how do you practice negotiating?
Try asking for a discount when you buy something.
It doesn’t matter if you get the discount or not.
The aim of this exercise is to get comfortable with making the ask.
There are some places which will have firm policies where the staff can’t do anything about pricing (like McDonald’s).
But you’ll be surprised how many places will be willing to give you a discount if you simply ask for one.
The best places to try are those that have:
- Long-term contracts.
- Relatively high prices.
- Less-standardised environments (not part of a chain).
Give it a go. The worst case is that they’ll say no.
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