Negotiating Tips for Women’s Empowerment

Last week, I attended a Zoom meeting with two amazing thought leaders in the Women and Money space: my dear friend and wealth coach, Barbara Stanny Huson, and Kathleen Kingsbury, a wealth psychology expert. On the Zoom call, Barbara interviewed Kathleen about her coaching on negotiating skills for women.

Before I get to the negotiating tips Kathleen gave us, I have to tell you a little about Barbara because I love her to pieces and she’s been instrumental in helping me heal my money relationship and own my worth as a money coach.

Barbara is a leading authority on women, money, and power. Her book, Prince Charming Isn’t Coming ignited a passion in me for women’s financial empowerment almost twenty-five years ago. She also wrote Overcoming Underearning, a book I highly recommend if you want to stop undercharging. I highly recommend all her books if you want to heal your relationship with money.

Meeting Kathleen on the call was especially meaningful for me because I’ve been following her work since my retirement planning days. She teaches financial advisors how to work with women. I love her book, Creating Wealth From the Inside Out, which is a life-changing workbook.

I once took it with me on a flight from San Francisco to Chicago and completed the entire workbook in five hours. It’s like I had my own women and money workshop right there on the flight, so powerful! The workbook is a take-action, step-by-step guide to help you examine your relationship with money. There is even a section where you work through money issues inherited from family. That exercise was an eye-opening experience for me. I highly recommend this book, too.

Why Negotiating Skills for Women?

Whether you work in corporate, education, business, or real estate, negotiating skills are a key factor in women’s financial empowerment.

Coaches, consultants, and freelancers would benefit tremendously by cultivating strong negotiating skills if they want to stop undercharging and command premium fees for their work.

Even though women have come a long way in terms of career advancement and leadership roles in the workplace, there is still a gender gap in terms of monetary compensation and promotion.

Kathleen suggests you cultivate your “negotiation mindset” to prepare. That way you’ll negotiate from a place of empowerment.

With that in mind, let’s discuss some practical tips and strategies for negotiating effectively as a woman whether in the workplace or marketplace (these skills can be used as a consumer, too!)

1. Own Your Value

The first step to successful negotiation is to know your worth. Research the industry standards for the position you are negotiating and the current market value. Analyze your strengths, achievements, and contributions to the organization to build a strong foundation for your negotiation. Prepare a strong case for why you are the right person. When you know your value, it is easier to make a compelling argument to support your request.

If you’re a coach, consultant, or speaker, knowing and conveying your worth is key to getting the fee you deserve for your services. Working on your mindset is highly recommended before entering any sales conversation with prospects. Rehearsing or role-playing what you’ll say is a great strategy for building your confidence.

2. Increase Your Confidence

Confidence is crucial when negotiating. Build your confidence by preparing in advance, practicing your negotiating skills, and identifying areas of strength. When you have a strong sense of self-assurance, it makes it easier to maintain composure and come across as persuasive and convincing. Working with a business or money coach can help in this area.

3. Polish Your Communication Skills

Speak confidently and clearly. Maintain a steady tone and keep your body language relaxed and friendly. Making eye contact builds rapport. Be confident in presenting yourself as a worthy candidate and don’t be afraid to ask questions or express your concerns. Practice negotiating with someone supportive to gain more confidence. Stay calm even if you feel uncomfortable. Give yourself permission to feel nervous.

4. Practice Active Listening

Active listening is a critical skill in negotiation. It will help you think about the other party and what’s in it for them. When you listen to the other person, you gain insights into their priorities, needs, and wants. You can tailor your approach to address their concerns while also advocating for your own needs.

Active listening also builds trust and rapport, which can help create a more positive and productive negotiating environment. Kathleen says when you engage in active listening, you can create a collaborative conversation because you know what the other party wants out of the arrangement.

5. Be Willing to Walk Away

Finally, be willing to walk away from the negotiation if necessary. This may seem counterintuitive, but if the other party is not willing to meet your needs, then it might be better to accept that the negotiation is unsuccessful. You always have a choice, and sometimes, walking away may be the better option.

Negotiation is an essential skill that all professional women should master because it will always be needed when endeavoring to build wealth. When you know your worth, increase your confidence, polish your communication skills, practice active listening, and be willing to walk away, you can negotiate from a place of empowerment.

Remember, the key to successful negotiation is preparation and practice but mostly confidence in yourself!

Also, if you are serious about building wealth, the books I mentioned above will help with negotiating skills for women and owning your worth.

Prince Charming Isn’t Coming

Overcoming Underearning

Creating Wealth From the Inside Out

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