» Companies hire freelancers because they need to address a specific issue or are not ready to commit to a full-time hire
» Excel by being a problem-solver — pay close attention to potential clients’ challenges
» Don’t apologise to your client for your (hopefully reasonable) day rate
» When negotiating, don’t pitch, listen
» To minimise residual influence, negotiate each point independently
» When trust is low, consider making a concession contingent on the other party reciprocating
» Conceding because you don’t want to upset the other party is a losing scenario
» Ask “why” to understand the other side’s position and interest
» All negotiations involve both rational and emotional elements
» Whatever decision you make as a product manager will disappoint some people
» Teams benefit from a shared understanding of the trade-offs of decisions
Product managers hate saying ‘no’. It’s not in our nature to disappoint people.
