The Art of Negotiation: How To Get What You Want

by Tim Castle

Anyone can learn to become a good negotiator. Let me show you how. I became a professional negotiator at the age of 23, and within just 12 months, I was single-handedly negotiating $1,000,000 deals. Being a negotiator has been such an empowering experience, and I’ve been able to transfer my professional skills into my personal life. Whether it’s buying a home, budgeting for a wedding, or even buying a car, we all need to negotiate. In this book, I’ll share insider tips, as well as teach you how to master the fundamentals, set clear objectives, overcome obstacles (i.e. turn ‘no’ into ‘yes’) and build long-term relationships, whether you are negotiating for yourself, or on behalf of your business. I will also give you practical advice and run through real-world scenarios to ensure you have the confi dence to tackle your next negotiation head on. Ready to see what you can achieve?

Genres: Business, Communication, Self Help, Nonfiction, Productivity, Relationships, Management

294 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2018

About the author

Tim is an award winning Author, inspirational speaker focused on the nexus of AI, negotiation and sales as well as self development and mindset. He helps companies to develop their influence, persuasion and negotiation skills in an AI centric world. He is host of the popular podcast and YouTube channel The Tim Castle Show. Author of 5 books. He writes to help the person he once was. He is an expert in Agentic AI, negotiation and sales. His skills in panel moderation, podcasting and speaking have inspired audiences across the globe. His interviews with big name authors Will Guidara, Jeb Blount, James Lawrence and Annalie Howling are impactful and viral.

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a giveaway. It has some great pointers for becoming a good negotiator, but it wasn't as engaging as I would have preferred. I would definitely categorize this as a self-help book, and in order to be helpful, such a book probably needs to demand the attention of the reader a little bit better.

That being said, this book contains some excellent tips for improving one's negotiation skills. I didn't really find anything earth-shattering in its pages, but all of the content is relevant and applicable. I found most of it to be fairly straightforward and logical, but perhaps I'm simply a better negotiator than I think I am already.

I certainly didn't dislike the book. I think its construction and content are well-suited to its message, and for anyone looking to learn how to negotiate this could be a valuable resource.

[ruike · Rating 3 out of 5]

// 3.5 stars

i do think that this book includes some pretty good general tips, but there's nothing really life-changing or incredible added value that it really brought to my life.

it was a slightly slow read as well, which was probably mostly because:
1) most things felt pretty straightforward and logical to me
2) the presentation felt a bit dry; the activities proposed weren't necessarily things i was inclined on trying out (apart from one or two)

but say you were looking for something like a guide to learn more about and aid negotiation, i would say this is quite all-encompassing and covers pointers that could be useful!

[Kayla Blair · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have mixed thoughts about this book. My first impression wasn’t great because if I’m being honest, if I was the receptionist in the story he uses in the introduction, I would have been so annoyed. Kind of felt like a “lack of planning on your part, doesn’t constitute an emergency on mine” kind of situation. And to be repeatedly nagged/bothered about your lack of planning while trying to do my job would not have been the way to “win me over”.

Overall, I think the book has a lot of good advice and information for how to be better at negotiating. Nothing super earth shattering but some good strategies and advice none the less.

I think where I struggled is it seems to contradict itself in places. It talks about finding the “win win” where both people get something out of the deal. But there’s a LOT of examples that point to just being “pushy” where the person on the other end of the negotiation likely wouldn’t get any benefit by making the deal aside from getting out of having to deal with someone who’s pushy and thinks they deserve something for nothing.

There’s also a place that it talks about how you should never lie during negotiating. But then in the next chapter talks about creating a sense of urgency. Even if it’s fabricated by using your friends as made up “buyers”. Aka…lying.

So…I guess the takeaway is, that pretty much anything goes when it comes to negotiating? And you should try to make everyone happy. Except when it’s at the expense of you getting what you want. And you shouldn’t lie. Except when you need to to make a deal…

[Mars · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good advice, but overall, it needs way more specific examples. Without the credible substance of instances of negotiation, it feels really rambly and broad. The few examples deal with tiny instances like asking for a discount at a restaurant or high caliber business meetings, but most times, we hit it and leave without grasping a solid understanding.

Good talking points:
• Research and preparation
• Self-confidence, body positions, and visualizing make favoriable outcomes more likely.
• Being honest and treating every encounter with human connection gives you value beyond "a deal" or numbers.
• Doing away with emotions and personal reasoning.
• If you're negotiating with others, sync up info, game plan, and support each other.
• How to use confidence in negotiating to pick yourself up even when you fall on hard times and steps you should take financially.

Poor talking points:
• Elon Musk and JK Rowling as examples of success in adversity did not age well, as they've lost the most respect in the public eye in the last few years.
• Lots of metaphors, and not enough "how" or clear examples to help some concepts stick. The few presented are vague.
• The writing style is a little jumpy with peaks of enthusiasm and choice of visual aid.
• 70% in before we get to real-world negotiating tips like home buying and career advancement.
• The advice that you must practice, practice, practice negotiation as often as possible, is much like "Instagram brands take 50 shots to get the right one" to gain confidence and move forward. What exactly, realistically, should I be negotiating every day?

[Tyler Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated the structure of The Art of Negotiation, it's a quick and worthwhile read. While the first three parts covered fairly basic, common-sense material, the later sections (starting around Part 4) introduced practical frameworks that I found genuinely helpful for negotiations I encounter.

What stood out most to me were the real-life examples at the end of the book. I am not a professional negotiator, but the scenarios covered like negotiating a salary, buying a home or car, or managing wedding costs are all high-stakes situations many people face. The book gave practical insights to specific details in each scenario

If you're looking to build more confidence in negotiating, this book is a helpful resource. It is not a must-read by any means, but I do feel it made me a stronger negotiator overall.

[Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, motivational and confidence boosting!

The Art of Negotiation explains the theory and skills needed for good negotiation, along with motivating and encouraging the reader to seek opportunities to use these skills regularly in their everyday lives. The author encourages the reader to be confident and have fun with negotiation, whilst emphasising the importance of building relationships and seeking a win-win outcome with the people we negotiate with.
I run my own business and this booked helped immensely both professionally and in my everyday life. I believe everyone can instantly benefit from learning good negotiation skills and The Art of Negotiation does a great job of teaching such skills to the reader.

[Vanessa Tan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing that we already didn't know, especially for those of us who already have some training or experience in negotiation. Some interesting anecdotes about famous people and insights from other books that we either already knew or could have learned about elsewhere, but put together nicely in this book to make a point. Still, overall an enjoyable read.

The biggest takeaway for me was about being clear about the WHY, and having unshakeable self-belief in the first place to make things happen. Techniques and frameworks will then fall into place.

[Bailey Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Art of Negotiation is a great book for both general, and specific concepts on how to live a better life. After all, you miss 100% of the negotiations you don’t take.

Tim Castle does an amazing job of catering to literally everyone. From negotiating a free cup of coffee to doing deals between corporations, he believes that everyone is capable of improving their quality of living through negotiation. A point that I, as well, believe in, thanks to this book.

[Glenn Yemoh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book. The work written by Tim Castle enlists all the strategies and mechanisms to get what you want in landing a deal or establishing a relationship (Business or Personal). It really helped strengthened my mindset on how a difference could be made by a simple from of communication. I'll surely give it another read again and again and again.

[Ng Voon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practical, almost a guide book for a novice like me. I tried the skill and got myself a nearly 75% on a full body massage without having the therapist rolling her eyes on me. Best deal thus far. Jest.

[Allison Cronin]

I messaged the author on Instagram after I read this book for my sales job. He said, every day, practice asking for things you think you won’t get. I made a point of doing so and it has proven effective. You never know what will happen until you try, and the worst that happens is you get a “no.”

[Alyssa Eidam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good tidbits of information from the author. But couldn’t shake the feelings of some under-toned principles of the author

[Rajin Shakya · Rating 4 out of 5]

awesome tips0

[AMAO · Rating 5 out of 5]

💯💯💯💯💯

[Kenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book as part of a class I was taking in college. It has some really good tips and pointers and aligned quite well with my course.

[Debbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read full of workable information.

[Rajasekaran Pillai · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh!

[Markbrown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book on negotiations

Good book on negotiations. Quick read.




A a a a a a a a a a a a a a h

[John Veech · Rating 4 out of 5]

not bad

This book was just ok. It had some good principles, but was not a game-changer. I think it was pretty basic.

[Daniel Gibson · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were some good bits in this, but I felt like the book could have been so much shorter. I was definitely reading it to the end just for the sake of finishing it.

I picked this book up thinking that it would be a little more in-depth. I was expecting more tips and tricks. It is quite high-level and I wasn’t always that engaged as a reader.

I think the author himself, based off this book and nothing else, probably is quite a good negotiator, but I don’t feel like I’ve learned much of “the art”, more so I’ve just had a glimpse into the mind of a negotiator.

To be honest, I would not recommend a friend to spend their time reading this over something else. I just don’t think the book was THAT good.