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H IGH -P OWERED R EAL E ST A TE T ECHNIQUES

your adversaries overestimate how savvy you really are. They may
abandon a negotiation strategy thinking: “He’s too smart for that to
work.” The kind of knowledge you want to display to your adversary
in a negotiation falls into two categories:

1. Actual knowledge. This is the knowledge obtained by one’s own
private experiences and education. You can easily increase
your store of knowledge by talking to outside professionals
prior to and during negotiations. Never be afraid or shy to ask
questions from someone in the know. The only stupid ques-
tion is the one you didn’t ask! Having discussions with experts
or people on your side is essential to obtaining the information
you need to shape your approach to any upcoming negotiation.
2. Apparent knowledge. This is the broad, or even superficial infor-
mation that a negotiator exhibits when discussing a particular
subject. When coupled with a smooth authoritative delivery it
can prove very effective. It may involve knowledge that the ne-
gotiator gained from comparable negotiations with comparable
adversaries in comparable situations. For example, if you’re
dealing with a loan officer from a new bank and you’ve dealt
with loan officers from other banks, you can assume that the
same corporate procedures and mentality will be found. Dis-
playing your knowledge of loan procedures to the new loan of-
ficer will make the officer less likely to pad the bank’s fee, and
more likely to make the adjustments you ask for.

Organize Your Information: Donald Trump’s Spiral
Notebook and Other Tools

If you want to develop this highly desirable characteristic it is essen-
tial that you develop a work habit and an infallible method of filing
information for immediate retrieval. You will find this a lifesaver

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