Book Review of “Trump-Style Negotiation” by George H. Ross

George Ross is a New York power real estate attorney who represented Donald Trump and many other high profile real estate big wigs over the past few decades, eventually becoming Executive Vice President and Senior Counsel for the Trump Organization and was costar of the hit TV show “The Apprentice”. On the side, he has taught negotiation courses at New York University’s School of Professional Studies and Continuing Education. So, all of this does give him some solid credentials to write about real estate negotiation strategies, and the book is a worthwhile read for active real estate investors: “Trump-Style Negotiation: Powerful Strategies and Tactics for Mastering Every Deal“.

Ross’ primary negotiation recommendations revolve around these eight strategies:
• Build trust, friendship, and satisfaction with the other side
• Discover what the other side wants, determine their weaknesses, and uncover valuable information
• Convince the other side they’re getting more than they expected
• Use timing, deadlines, deadlocks, and delays to your advantage
• Employ psychological negotiation tactics
• Become an expert on the topic you’re negotiating
• Be flexible and consider multiple solutions to every impasse
• Tap into powerful planning and organizational tools to help you win

I found the book to be full of useful tips, some of which would need to be adapted to personal style and situation. But there is plenty to pick and choose from. In some ways, it is the kind of book that would be useful to re-read later after trying out some of the concepts. Comparing your own personal experience to the recommendations, and looking at the book from the viewpoint of recent completed negotiations, could all be helpful.

On counterpoint, the stories sometimes lack a consistent moral compass. While he emphasizes being trustworthy and legitimate, he also provides methods to obfuscate, distract, and essentially say false info that is left up to the person on the other side of the negotiation to determine if it is correct or not. Also, his longstanding relationship with Donald Trump would imply that many of these strategies were used by Trump. However, many of his most specific stories actually revolve around his work for other real estate tycoons such as Sol Goldman. Accordingly, sometimes the use of Trump’s name in the title appears to be more for name recognition than actual focus of all the experiences.

Overall a recommended book. Well written, digestible, and understandable Big League experience that can help an investor in any size real estate transaction.