Chill Out

Making deals can be stressful. Although pressure is inevitable,how well you handle it is up to you. Here are some ways to keepfrom flaring up or burning out at the bargaining table:

• Do your homework. This is the most effective antidote toany form of anxiety. Start your fact gathering and due diligenceearly. Establish goals. Get your team in place. Simply put, themore prepared you are, the less you'll have to stressabout.
• Be positive. Learn to see problems as challenges. Youwill face maddening obstacles, not to mention opponents who arebest described by long strings of expletives. Transcend them. Asany grade-B action hero (or world-class philosopher) will tell you:That which does not destroy you makes you stronger.
• Know when to stop. No deal is perfect. There will alwaysbe one more point to win. If the expense, effort, time, lostopportunity or added damage to your nerves outweigh the benefit ofany further concessions, shake on it and call it a deal. On theother hand, once you've beat every issue to death and the dealstill doesn't meet your bottom line, walk away. It ain'tyour first deal, and it won't be your last.
• Finally, relax. Take your business deals seriously, butnot too seriously. Whatever happens at the bargaining table,it's grace under pressure that will really make you awinner.