Knowing When to Walk Away in Negotiation

They thought they had no choice. That’s why they almost gave in. I was in the room when it happened. A client (let’s call them Pollocks Pipelay) had been working with the same supplier for years. Solid relationship, reliable service. But one day, the supplier walked in and said: "𝙒𝙚’𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙮 𝟯𝟬%. 𝙉𝙤𝙣-𝙣𝙚𝙜𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚." Immediate silence and panic. They needed this supplier - They started calculating how to absorb the cost - There was no backup - No safety net Then I asked the team: "𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠?" Nobody had an answer! I aimed to shift their view from fear to power Most negotiators consider a Fallback Plan (BATNA) a concept The best negotiators 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙚 it. - We took a step back - We mapped the fundamental alternatives - We found a smaller but reliable European supplier Was it perfect? No Was it good enough to remove the fear of walking away? Absolutely At the next meeting, Pollocks Pipelay didn’t beg for a price adjustment Instead, they confidently said: "𝙒𝙚’𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠" You should have seen the supplier’s face The power dynamic instantly flipped: - Pollocks Pipelay secured better payment terms - The supplier dropped their price increase entirely - They knew they’d never be backed into a corner again I see this mistake constantly. Smart professionals walking into negotiations without a strategic fallback plan → 85% of negotiators lack a strong fallback plan →Those who anchor first with a solid BATNA secure deals 26% closer to their goals →Having a fallback plan reduces bad deals by 40% while preserving relationships Yet so many people still fear walking away. Make your Fallback Plan your power move 1️⃣ Before the negotiation: Identify at least two real alternatives. Don’t rely on assumptions. Map your ZOPA (Zone of Possible Agreement). Study their BATNA—what are their options if you walk? 2️⃣ During the negotiation: Signal strength (“We’re weighing options, but I’d like to find common ground”) Stay flexible—adjust if new information emerges. 3️⃣ After the negotiation: Document what worked. Refine your BATNA for next time. The Best Negotiators Don’t Fear Walking Away—𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀. Don't be aggressive in negotiations. Just know your worth and your options. Think about your negotiations. Do you have a Fallback Plan? Or just hope for the best? Have you ever been in a deal where you felt trapped but found a way out? Or maybe you’ve walked away, and later realized it was the best move you could’ve made? Drop your story in the comments. Let’s talk about how having (or not having) a fallback plan (BATNA) changed your outcome.

Most salespeople walk away from deals too late. The best ones walk away too early, and then come back. Here's what separates elite qualifiers from everyone else: they understand walking away isn't binary. It's strategic. The real question shouldn't be "should I walk away?" It's "what would need to change for this to be worth pursuing?" Three scenarios where walking away is actually opening a door: 1. Walking away from the wrong buyer You're talking to Operations. They love you. But this is fundamentally a CFO decision about capital allocation strategy. Most reps keep grinding with Ops, hoping to "build momentum." Elite reps say: "I appreciate your interest, but based on similar deals, this decision typically sits with finance leadership. Without their involvement now, we're both going to waste 90 days. Can we regroup when you have CFO engagement, or should we pause?" You're not killing the deal. You're refusing to let it die slowly in a bloated pipeline. 2. Walking away from bad timing The prospect is qualified. Real pain. Real budget. But they're in the middle of an ERP implementation, a merger, or a leadership transition. Amateur move: "Let's keep talking and stay top of mind." Pro move: "Here's what I've seen happen when companies try to tackle this during a systems migration: it doesn't get the attention it needs and becomes a distraction. What if we put a pin in this for Q3 when you're through implementation? I'll check back in July." You just became the only rep who understands their business reality. When timing is right, you're the first call. 3. Walking away from value misalignment They want a $50K solution. You sell $500K enterprise deals. The gap isn't negotiable. Most reps either try to force-fit or slow-fade. Both waste time. Better play: "Based on what you've described, we're over-engineered for your needs. But let me introduce you to [smaller competitor/partner], who's built for exactly this. If your situation changes, especially if you expand into [trigger event], reconnect." You lose a deal you were never going to win. You gain a referral source and a grateful contact who'll remember you when they scale. The pattern elite qualifiers understand: Walking away with clarity and respect creates more pipeline than chasing bad fits. You signal confidence. You demonstrate business acumen. You show you're selective about who you work with. And here's what nobody talks about: 30-40% of the deals I've walked away from come back. Not because I used reverse psychology. Because the act of walking away forced them to clarify what they actually needed—and whether they were serious. The amateurs are afraid to disqualify because they need every opportunity. The pros disqualify aggressively because they need their time back for real deals. Your pipeline shouldn't be a collection of maybes. It should be a portfolio of high-conviction bets. What's your framework for knowing when to walk vs. when to push ahead?

I walked away from a $22,000 fee. All because a client took 11 days to return one voicemail. That was the only data point I needed. 15 years in this business has taught me something simple: The way a company treats you during the pitch Is exactly how they’ll treat your candidates during the process… And your invoice at the end. I used to override these signals. Tell myself the fee was too good to walk away from. Then I'd spend 8 weeks chasing feedback, re-presenting shortlists, and watching candidates ghost after being left waiting too long between stages. I'd close the deal and lose the placement anyway. Every bad client I’ve had showed me who they were in week one. I just ignored them and pushed through… Now there are a few things that end the conversation immediately: - They want retained behavior on a contingency commitment. - They ask to “see a few profiles first.” - They can’t clearly explain why the last hire left. None of these are minor details anymore. They’re previews of what will come. And I don’t negotiate with previews. Because the real cost of a bad client isn’t the deal that falls apart. It’s the two good ones you didn’t have time to win While you were looking after the wrong one. Standards protect margin. Standards protect time. Standards protect reputation. $22K isn’t expensive to walk away from. Not when you get the time back to spend with clients who actually deserve you. Deeper insight in our Newsletter. Link below.

Negotiations show you more than deal terms. They give you a peek at how you’ll work together. How someone negotiates often reveals how they’ll act later. It's not about how many emails or Slack messages you send… …it's about what those messages tell you. So, what should you look out for? ⦿ Difficulty aligning on basic terms ⦿ Indecisiveness or backtracking ⦿ Communication that feels more chaotic than constructive ⦿ Agrees to specific terms and then doesn’t adhere to them ⦿ Brings a lot of diva or drama to the conversation These aren't just minor annoyances—they give you information. Why? Because misaligned expectations hurt both sides. When expectations aren’t in sync from the start… …it’s hard for either party to feel satisfied with the results. As leaders, we often face a tough choice: Do we take the deal or hire the person and hope things get better? Or do we have the self-awareness to walk away… …even if it means forfeiting money or resources. The most successful partnerships start with alignment. In values, in vision, in how you work. When that alignment isn’t there from the start? No amount of good intentions can force it into existence. The bravest business decision is saying "no." It frees you to say "yes" to the right ones.

9 months negotiating. Stockholm syndrome set in. CEO finally asked: "Why are we doing this?": Ever seen a contractor about to sign something that would have lead to certain disputes? This was during COVID when equipment was lying idle for almost two years. Real push to get the equipment working again, even though the contract wasn't perfect. The negotiation had gone on for nine months and some of the team had Stockholm syndrome - too close to the client, justifying bad terms because they'd invested so much in landing a contract. The warning signs were everywhere. We'd discuss one issue and two or three other issues would pop up. Whack-a-mole for seven months. Every time you got one issue sorted, another one popped up. We never actually resolved anything, just pushed problems down the track. There was real push to sign because people had vested interests; career advancement, getting equipment working, looking productive. What saved it? Work popped up in another region and they said "that's it, this vessel is going." They walked away. Best thing that ever happened. Because that project? It'd basically been mothballed for four or five years since. If we'd signed, the contractor would still be scrambling in that mess today. The warning signs were all there: → Whack-a-mole issues (solving one creates three more) → Stockholm syndrome from long negotiations → External pressure to sign despite red flags → Client not actually resolving anything Its not just about drafting contracts, you need to spot the warning signs. The ones that tell you this client will be a nightmare, that the contract will destroy your margins, that you're walking into years of disputes. A contract strategy before signing can save you years of pain and millions in losses. Sometimes the best contract decision is walking away, even when everyone's pushing to just sign it. P.S. Ever walked away from a contract that would have destroyed you?

I used to say yes to almost any client. Then one project changed that. In the early days, saying no felt impossible. I thought every project mattered. Every client mattered. Walking away felt like leaving money on the table. Then came a prospect who taught me otherwise. From the first call, it was clear how they worked- • They wanted everything done fast: replies, revisions, contracts. • If they emailed us, they expected a reply within minutes. • When we needed something from them, they went quiet for weeks. We followed up. Waited. Followed up again. Silence. The pattern was obvious: • Months of scrambling to meet deadlines. • Them taking their time. • Us carrying all the weight. All for a project that didn’t justify the effort. So I said no. No long explanation. No drama. Just a polite message: "I don’t think we’re going to be a good fit." They did not reply. The relief was immediate. I avoided months of unnecessary stress. I reclaimed time to focus on clients who respect the process. The lesson is simple and repeatable:  If a client shows you how they will behave before you start, believe them. And before you say yes, check these three things: • Reciprocity - do they respond when you need them? • Respect for process - do they follow agreed timelines? • Fair economics - does the price match the effort? If the answers worry you, it is okay to walk away. You are not protecting time only. You are making space for clients who actually help your business grow. --- ✍ Reply with 1 red flag you will no longer tolerate.

When walking away is the best sale you’ll ever make When I was working at McKeown Software, we’d fought hard to become the number one ERP and accounting system in the NHS (UK Healthcare market) It wasn’t down to luck, just solid teamwork and the kind of sales slog anyone who’s carried a quota will recognise At Chelsea and Westminster Hospital (yes, the one featured in the 1998 film Sliding Doors), we ran into a new competitor entering the market with a product called Tapestry The deal came down to a shortlist of two We were invited in by the head of procurement to discuss pricing and contract terms Back then, my manager handled the negotiations That was probably a good thing, he was far more level-headed than the younger version of me who just wanted to close the deal The meeting started with a line I’ll never forget: “This meeting may be very short. We’ve got your competitors in the room next door. We’re happy with your pricing and your contract.” At this point, I’m holding my breath. Then came the twist. “The competitor has already agreed to a clause guaranteeing that if we use their product, there will be no degradation of our network. We want you to guarantee the performance of our network as well.” Without hesitation, Simon—my sales manager—replied: “I’m really sorry, but the network is out of our control. We can’t agree to that.” And that was it We packed up, walked out, and I lost the deal… along with the commission Not long after, Tapestry went bust Chelsea and Westminster Hospital was left part-way through implementing an ERP system that no longer had a future Two years later, it was satisfying to sell them Oracle Financials instead Different deal Sensible contract terms And interestingly, I never saw that procurement manager in the room when the agreement was signed Conclusion Early in your sales career, it feels painful to walk away from a deal, especially when commission is on the line But some contracts aren’t worth winning Saying “no” to unreasonable terms isn’t losing; it’s protecting your customer, your company, and your reputation Sometimes the best sales decision you make today is the one that pays off years later  #Sales #Marketing #Leadership #SocialSelling #Speaker

When it’s time to say goodbye. Firing a client is easily one of the toughest decisions I've had to make—both as a leader and now as a business owner. You put in the hard yards building relationships, investing time, energy, and trust. So pulling the pin—especially when there’s mutual respect—is never easy. I tend to hang in there longer than I should, particularly when I value the personal connection. But sometimes, the writing’s on the wall. Recently, after a week of wrestling with it, I ended things with a longstanding client. Even those close to me cautioned against it. Still, I knew it was the right call. Here’s why it’s ok: Some clients are quietly asking you to let them go. Not in words, but through patterns you can’t ignore: -- The late-payer -- The time-waster: lots of talk, little value -- The attention-seeker: always urgent, rarely appreciative Let me be clear: I’m grateful for every single client I’ve ever worked with. But not all relationships are equal—and not all are meant to last. Before making the call, I always ask myself four questions: (1) Can we genuinely turn things around? (2) Have we done everything we can to improve the situation? (3) Can we afford to walk away? (4) What's the upside in us taking this action? I also own my part before pointing fingers. But when you’ve done the work, had the hard chats, and nothing shifts—it’s time to face the music. So, how can you walk away with your head held high? Here's a simple checklist: -- Know the contract: Your notice period and obligations. -- Be clear on the reason: Keep it simple and focused on business needs. -- Put it in writing: Short, respectful, professional. Thanking them for their contribution. -- Give notice: Two to four weeks, enough for a handover. -- Offer a referral: Leave the door open with grace. Things change, and relationships can be restored after a break. -- Know your value: Be calm and confident. Don’t over-explain. Remove all emotion. Unless things are truly untenable, don’t "dump and run". If you do the right thing on the way out, it can often present as an opportunity for growth. In 25 years, I’ve only once left a project midstream—and that was because of how the client treated one of our team. For a small business like ours, letting go of the wrong clients creates space for the right ones—the ones who value what you do and how you do it. It’s part of growth. It’s not about burning bridges. It’s about backing your values, protecting your team, and knowing your worth.

"I walked away from a $20M Series A the day before signing. Best decision I ever made." A founder got cold feet about a VC deal and backed out at the last minute. It was a blessing. Six months later, he discovered that same VC had destroyed two other portfolio companies. Here's why trusting your gut can save your company. Everything looked perfect. Top-tier VC, $20M Series A, term sheet signed, lawyers working on docs. Then he had dinner with another founder from their portfolio. "How's working with [VC firm]?" "Dude, they're destroying us. Forced us to fire our engineering team. Revenue dropped 60%. They're pushing us toward an acqui-hire." He called his lawyer that night: "Kill the deal." Red flags the founder ignored early on: - VC repeatedly raised questions about potential CEO replacement during negotiations. Kept asking about scenarios in which the founder will step down. - Wanted "operating partners" installed day one - Kept talking about potentially merging with "similar portfolio companies" - Focused more on financials and operations than product-market fit The gut check: Do they want YOUR vision or their vision? Are they backing you or replacing you? Would you want to work FOR these people? How it ended - He raised $5M from angels, grew to $15M revenue, sold for >$200M. The VC firm? two more portfolio companies failed the next year. Sometimes the best deal is the one you walk away from. Your gut knows when something feels wrong. A smaller check from the right investor massively beats a big check from the wrong one. #Founders #VentureCapital #RedFlags