What's your price?

An average looking man walks up to a rather attractive woman and asks her if she would sleep with him for ten million dollars. She smiles brightly and says "yes, of course". He then takes ten dollars out of his wallet, hands it to her and says "how about for ten dollars?" With a shocked look on her face she says "what kind of woman do you think I am?" He replies, "we've already established that. Now we're just negotiating the price."

It's kind of a funny example. But it is something to think about. In this particular example one person is asking another to do something that they probably would not do just because the first person asked them to. So he mentions a ridiculous sum of money as a bribe. Without even thinking about it, she says yes. She has literally indicated that her services can easily be bought and that ten million dollars is more than enough.Then he offers practically nothing as motivation and she gets offended. But what if he had offered ten thousand instead of ten? And then if she said yes to ten thousand maybe she would also say yes to one thousand. There is a point where she would have hesitated between yes and no and then if he offered just a little more it would again be back to a firm yes.

This example is about sex for money. But it really could be about any service that a person can offer in exchange for anything the person might want in exchange. There is very little that a person will not do if provided the right kind and amount of motivation. It is what every interaction where one person gets something from another is about.

Jobs are all about people trading time for money. An employer will have a hard time filling a position that pays $7.50 per hour if all of the people that apply for the position believe that the work being done is worth $20 per hour or more. Conversely, people will line up around the block to apply for a job which pays $20 per hour if only $7.50 per hour worth of work is required.

It isn't always about money though. When friends or family ask you to do things for them, they might attempt to get you to agree by offering to take you out to dinner afterwards or offering some other service to you in exchange. Or they might just ask the favor and  offer nothing in exchange. The strength of the relationship you have with them then plays a big part in whether you agree to their terms or you deny their request.

For every single thing that a person can ask of you, there is a price in your head for which you will do that thing. It may be money. It may be material goods. It may just be some other service that you want in exchange. It may be a reasonable sum. It may be something outlandish or ridiculous. But, it does exist. And if someone else knows your price they can get you to do what they want.  Or vice versa if you know theirs.

Sometimes a person will come right out and tell you the exact measure that it will take to get them to do what you want. Other times you can haggle with them until you find an agreeable amount. And often the best way to do that is to offer something like the opening example and see what they say or do.