Negotiation Skills for Business, Salary and Debt

Real Estate Investing: Sales and Negotiation Skills are Critical

Do you want to build wealth through real estate? You need expertise in two critical areas: specific investment strategies and sales and negotiation skills. But if knowing how to identify good deals is what's really important about investing in real estate, why do investors need to worry about their sales and negotiation skills?

"Knowing how to identify good deals is certainly a critical part of real estate investing, but it's not the only part," says Russ Whitney, internationally recognized real estate expert and bestselling author of Millionaire Real Estate Mentor (Dearborn Trade Publishing). "Your investment may be an inanimate object, but in the process of making that investment, you have to deal with people. If you take a look at anyone who has made a lot of money—regardless of the circumstances or the vehicle they used—you'll find they have at least one trait in common: They have top-notch selling skills."

Peter Conti and David Finkel agree. In their book, Making Big Money Investing in Real Estate, they say, "The single most important skill you have as an investor is your ability to connect emotionally with people." With an emotional connection, you can work through the mechanics of any deal.

The first step in developing strong sales and negotiation skills is to get rid of any preconceived notions you may have about what being a salesperson is all about, says Russ Whitney. "It's not about making a slick, fast-talking presentation or tricking someone into buying something they don't want, won't use, and can't afford," he says. "Selling is about solving problems. It's about creating win-win situations. It's about honesty, integrity, knowledge, and building relationships that serve everyone."

Second, Whitney says, understand that you can use sales skills in just about every aspect of your business and personal life. "Think about it: buying a house for no money down, getting a loan at a bank, convincing your spouse to support your dreams, even persuading your toddler to eat his vegetables--it's all selling," he says. "Once you realize this and work on developing your sales skills, you'll find it much easier to reach your financial goals--and in fact, you'll find just about everything in your life is easier."

Third, commit yourself to win-win results. "Too many people think that in any negotiation, you must have a winner and a loser. That's just not true," says Whitney. "You want people to come away from a deal with you feeling good, and that's why you work on reaching a win-win resolution. Communicate clearly enough and consider all your options so you can come up with a plan that benefits everyone involved. That's successful selling."

Fourth, learn the techniques. "The techniques of positive communications--which is what selling basically is--are techniques anyone can learn and develop," says Whitney. "There is no such thing as a 'born salesperson.' Learning the techniques may be easier for some than others, but everyone can learn them."

Fifth, get rid of your self-imposed limits and believe you can negotiate profitable deals. In his book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, T. Harv Eker writes, "One of the principles we teach in our programs is 'If you shoot for the stars, you'll at least hit the moon.' Poor people don't even shoot for the ceiling in their house, and then they wonder why they're not successful. Well, they just found out. You get what you truly intend to get."

Whitney suggests taking courses, reading books, and studying successful people to learn effective sales and negotiation techniques. But, he says, the most important thing for someone to know about developing selling skills is this: "Always operate with truth, honesty, and integrity. Your reputation is the most valuable asset you'll ever have; guard it well."

Jordan Taylor is the editor of Millionaire Mentor™ Newsletter, which is published by Whitney Education Group, Inc.™ To sign up for a free subscription, visit http://russwhitney.com

MORE ARTICLES:

Resource Website Directory
A helpful directory of websites and other online resources.

When & How To Negotiate The Deal
If you opt to shop for a car on your own, remember this: you are the consumer and have a right to walk away from a deal at any time. You should do your research and have several options in mind to avoid being pigeonholed into making a costly decision.

Know What You Can Negotiate In Your New Car Loan
Even with today's economy somersaulting in many directions, getting a new car loan is still on some people's list of things to do this year. It may be for necessity, a growing family, or a son or daughter off to college, but whatever the reason, the opportunity to obtain a fair loan is more on your side, the consumer, than the financial institutions that want your business.

10 Tips On How To Negotiate
In some time or another in your life you will have to negotiate Good negotiating skills are not only valuable, but also essential when buying property

Child Custody Arrangements - How to Negotiate the Best Arrangement For Your Child
We all want the best for our kids, whether it's the best schools, the best opportunities and even the best arrangements when it comes to child custody The first thing we must realize is that cutting our ex spouse out of our child's life in order to hurt the spouse is NOT what's best for the child

Negotiate The Best Auto Purchase
The first thing to keep in mind if you plan on financing your new automobile is that the dealer's offer is not necessarily the best loan available If you establish direct contact with lenders, especially via the Internet that is where you will find the lowest rates

Negotiate Your Stress And Live A Healthy Life
As busy individuals we often fail to acknowledge the fact that stress and your health are ultimately two faces of the same coin One survives with the other and never without

Negotiate Better Terms With Your Credit Card Issuer
Credit card holders may be having a hard time keeping up with the constantly changing rules within the industry Strategies that have long be considered fool proof when managing your credit card account are now no longer a sure thing

How to Negotiate Salary - Get What You're Worth
Your dream employer is interested in hiring you and all that lies in the way now is to negotiate your salary You want to be sure that you get what you are worth, but at the same time you don't want to lose this huge job opportunity

How To Negotiate With Your Outsourcing Service Providers
In the current economic environment, businesses are trying to cut costs from all possible ends. Strict IT budgets and limited resources are making it even more difficult to get things done but still it is important to adhere to the same levels of service and functionality. Keeping the quality of deliverables the same in spite of the reduced budget makes it important to extract the best value for every penny that is spend.

How to Negotiate Better Deals With NLP
We all negotiate every day In business sales the negotiation is a core skill for anyone who has to purchase and sell products and services

A succinct guide on how to negotiate the best quotes for annuities
Taking some time just to comprehend how the pension annuity system works could be worth huge amounts on money later in life.

Negotiation Skills Tips: How To Get The Most From a Job Interview
There are few more stressful events in your career than interviewing for a new position. It makes little difference whether you are interviewing for another position with more responsibility within your present organisation or if you are exploring new opportunities - the stakes are high.

Negotiate Credit Card Debt Settlement
Debt settlement or otherwise called debt negotiation is an attempt to reduce existing debt where the creditor agrees to accept a subsidized payment that would be regarded as the full payment Debt negotiation is a great way to pay back any kind of credit card debt, although not many of us are aware of this simple fact

A short guide on how best to negotiate the best quotes for annuities
Taking just a short while to understand how the pension annuity system works could be worth a substantial amount in years to come.