Exploding Offers Suck

Read 'Getting to Yes' and 'Bargaining for Advantage.' Use the principles when making any large purchase or changing jobs.

Most retail cashiers can also give 10% discounts without approval. Find opportunities to negotiate.

Buy things on craigslist and be patient.

If you read the books, you'll also see more everyday situations and compromises as chances to use negotiating skills. There's no reason it needs to be money.

If you're in software you can also read patio11's valuable thoughts: http://www.kalzumeus.com/2012/01/23/salary-negotiation/

Don't confuse what the laws says can happen with what will happen.

Look people don't need much of a leg to stand on if they want to sue if the pot of gold is big enough. But at least, in my experience, people are usually hard pressed to sue over verbal contracts or for that matter obviously even many written and executed contracts.

Keep in mind that the advice that many lawyers will give you is going to generally steer away from telling you to take chances lest you then go and pin the blame on him when you are the edge case.

I would think you would. If you have 10 candidates but only want to hire 1, you can only issue one offer at a time regardless the fact that all 10 are equally qualified. While the first candidate would love to have all the time in the world to contemplate the offer, the employer and the other 9 candidates who are waiting in line don't want that.

Verbally reject the offer or the deadline?

Can you give us some examples?

I understand that it is most likely the deadline, but from the sounds of it the strategy should be a little more complex.

Currently it sounds like:

Someone: We would need an answer in 10 days?

Your friend: I can't reply in 10 day.

--- 12 days later ---

Your friend: The answer is yes.

Someone: We'll give you the money.

The success rate of this exchange seems questionable.

And geez there's a boatload of things to take into account and they have to become second nature (like playing a sport or self defense) so you just have to spend time and practice all the time and keep practicing.

I actually keep my own notes on all my thoughts and techniques that pop into my mind.

Here is one as example.

Timing. Timing is important. I take into account not only how quickly someone replies but how quickly I reply or get back to someone. There is a reason and a strategy behind what people do in most, but of course not all cases. Even the time of day they reply and the length of the reply and exactly the words they use as well. Say when you propose something how quickly do they get back to you? All context in different cases means different things.

Also timing as far as when you spring things upon people.

For example I'm currently in the process of getting my bathroom quoted for remodeling. I've settled on a particular vendor that I'm pretty sure I will use. We've been going back and forth on details for probably 6 to 8 weeks. They've given me pricing and I haven't asked or said anything regarding getting a discount. At all. I also haven't asked for any exact details on products they are using. I don't care at this point.

What I will do is most likely bring up a discount at the very end of the process. When they have already spent time on the deal and don't want to lose it. [1] I will also bring up other factors to them (non monetary but convenience for us) at the end. I know they won't be as likely to blow off those concerns after the big investment in time they have made.

[1] After listening to my war stories my ex wife used the same technique against me when we were ready to sign our divorce papers. At the very end as we sat there the deal all done and papers ready to sign she said "I'll only sign if you also pay for my trip to XYZ". While I could have walked she knew me well enough to know that I wouldn't and actually I was kind of proud that she had listened and learned. Which is another point in order to negotiate you have to know as much as you can about the motivations of the other side as possible. (So research is important).