You want what you want.  But who doesn’t?  The key is that as teens and young adults, you don’t always have the control, power or money to do things your way.  One way to earn a little more of all of those, however, is through negotiation.

Whether you want a higher allowance, a later curfew, permission to get a driver’s license or part time job, chances are you’ll need to use bargaining skills to get closer to what you want.

And once you have these skills, you’ll use them over and over again, whether it’s with your parents, your friends, your boss or eventually (gulp) with your own kids.

Negotiation 101:

• Prove yourself.  Before you can ask for anything, you have to have proven yourself worthy.  Think of your behavior as a bank account.  Every time you get your homework or chores done, you’re making a deposit into the account of responsibility.  Then, when you want something, you won’t withdraw more than you have available.

• Start a conversation.  Saying: “I’d like to talk with you about my allowance,” opens up an opportunity to discuss things much more than: “I need more money!”

• Be willing to give back.  A negotiation is two-way.  If you ask for something, are you willing to give something in return?  “With a higher allowance, I’ll buy my own gas.”  Or “With a later curfew, I’d expect to take on more responsibility—I’ll fix dinner two nights a week.”

Approaching a problem this way demonstrates a maturity that makes it more likely you’ll get your way—at least some of the time.

YOUR 2 CENTS – Let us know any experience you’ve had negotiating for something and how it went for you.

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