Page 65 - How To Get Rich

In a good negotiation, all sides win.

Let Your Guard Down, but Only on Purpose
Offer a calculated nugget of information, or a provocative opinion, to

see what the reaction is.
If you say something seemingly off the cuff, you may get a revealing
response. I might make an outrageous comment in a meeting just to see
whether the other people play along or take a stand and disagree. It’s a
good way of assessing the mettle of the folks across the table. Do they
want to be liked? Are they comfortable with unpredictability? Are they
capable of candor?

Know that your negotiating partner might bluff, too. But when it
comes to serious endeavors, you don’t want bluffers of any sort. Study the
person’s history.
I’m always surprised when newcomers to the real estate industry think
that talking big and fast will get them somewhere with me. Construction
of a big building is painstaking work and that’s the kind of person I want

doing it—someone who will take the time to do it right. I don’t want
people who think they can get it done in record time. That can spell
disaster.
I remember one contractor who tried every angle to convince me how
fast he was. His time estimates were so far off that I couldn’t take him
seriously, but I let him keep trying to pitch me just to find out how full of
it he really was. He must have thought he caught me on a bad day or with

my guard down, but my guard wasn’t down—I was just incredulous.
Finally, I told the guy that what he was saying was exactly what I never
wanted to hear. He was the first person whose bid was ruled out.

Being Stubborn Is Often an Asset

My first big deal, in 1974, involved the old Commodore Hotel site near
Grand Central Station on Forty-second Street in New York City. The hotel
was vacant, except for a sleazy club called Plato’s Retreat and some
rundown street-level stores.
The land was owned by the Penn Central Railroad, which was bankrupt
and owed New York City $15 million in back taxes that the city
desperately needed. The city was about to default on its bonds, and banks
would not consider real estate loans in Manhattan.