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TR U M P STR A TEGI ES FO R R E A L ESTA TE

Improve Your Personality

Be a “nice person” to deal with. Be friendly. Make others feel “com-
fortable” in talking and dealing with you. This is essential. If people
like you they’ll go all out to please you. Look for common ground to
establish a good rapport with the other side. Find a common theme
for discussion. Look around their offices or desks. If they’re inter-
ested in sports—talk sports. Look for family pictures and ask ques-
tions about them. “Is that your grandchild? She looks like a tomboy,
is she? How many grandchildren do you have? How many boys? Do
you see them often?” The greater interest you show in them, the
more you engender a “warm and cozy” feeling.
Exhibiting a good sense of humor is usually an excellent ice-
breaker, but stay clear of anything that might be considered offensive.
Let it be known that you are a deal maker, not a deal breaker. Con-
vince the other side of your sincerity and desire to reach a mutually
amicable conclusion.
Learn flexibility. In negotiation, you rarely get exactly what you
want. Getting close or achieving an acceptable alternate is equivalent
to total victory.
Establish a reputation of trustworthiness. If you promise to call,
do so. If you say, “I’ll get you that information,” get it. Remember
there is a severe discount factor for lack of trust. You can never quan-
tify the amount of the discount. No one ever asks for a pound of
friendship or a bucket of integrity but they are always willing to pay
(in the form of granting concessions) if you deliver friendship and
integrity in the negotiation process.

Display Knowledge of the Subject Matter

An interesting phenomenon I mentioned earlier in this chapter is
that if you convince your adversaries that you have extensive knowl-
edge—even though you really don’t, you may win many points when

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