You will be able to close a negotiation with a clear written record of the terms.
Wei Ling's phone call with the recruiter ends warmly. They've agreed on a base salary, a start date and a review after six months. Everyone says "great, we'll get the paperwork moving". Ten days later, the offer letter arrives, and the review date isn't in it. When she asks, the recruiter says she doesn't remember agreeing to that, and the hiring manager who did agree to it is on leave.
Most negotiations that go wrong after agreement go wrong like this: not through bad faith, but because two people left the room with slightly different memories. This lesson is about closing in a way that leaves no gap. All figures are examples.
Before the conversation ends, summarise what you've agreed, out loud, one item at a time. Don't wait for the other side to do it.
"Just so we're both clear: base salary of S$5,900 a month, start date on the first of next month, a formal pay review after six months, and the same leave as the offer letter. Have I got that right?"
This takes thirty seconds and does a surprising amount. It catches misunderstandings while both people are still there to fix them. It turns a friendly conversation into a list of specific terms. And it gives the other side a chance to say "actually, the review is after a year", which is much better to hear now than when the letter arrives.
If anything gets corrected, say the corrected version back again. Keep going until there's nothing left for either of you to adjust.
Then send a written summary, the same day if you can. A short email is enough. It's the written version of what you just said aloud, plus anything that needs to happen next.
The skills from Communicate at work help here, particularly lesson 2.1, Emails with one ask, a deadline and a useful subject line. A clear subject such as "Summary of our call today: offer terms" makes the email easy to find later. Then list the agreed terms, one per line, and end with the next step: "I'll look out for the revised offer letter, and I'll reply within two working days of receiving it."
The email isn't the contract, though. Anything significant must end up in the document that actually binds both sides: the offer letter or employment contract for a job, the tenancy agreement for a lease, the signed quotation or service agreement for a supplier. When the formal document arrives, check it against your summary, line by line, before you sign. If something's missing, point to your email and ask for it to be added. Lesson 8.1 makes the same point about tenancy agreements and WhatsApp chats.
Just as the deal seems done, the other side sometimes makes one more small request. The recruiter, sending the revised letter, adds: "Oh, and could you start a week earlier? The team's really stretched." This is the nibble: a small extra ask that arrives after agreement, when you're relaxed and keen to finish.
Nibbles work because saying no feels petty after all that goodwill, and the request is small. Many are innocent. But each one is a concession, and lesson 5.1, Every concession gets something back, applies to it like any other.
So treat it as a new trade. "I could probably start a week earlier. If I do, could the six-month review be brought forward to five months?" Or decline politely: "I've committed to finishing a handover at my current job, so the agreed date is the earliest I can do." What you shouldn't do is give it away automatically just because the main deal is done. Module 6 covers the nibble with the other pressure tactics.
The last part of closing is how the other side feels as they walk away. In most of your negotiations you'll deal with the same people again. The recruiter's colleague will be your manager. The landlord will be your landlord for another two years. The client will decide whether to renew next year.
So close with genuine thanks, and if they gave ground, acknowledge it. "Thanks for going back to the hiring manager on the salary. I appreciate it, and I'm looking forward to starting." Don't gloat, and don't tell anyone in their organisation how much further you think they would have gone. A counterpart who feels they did well is easier to work with tomorrow.
Wei Ling's next negotiation, the six-month review, will be with people from this one. How this one ends shapes how that one starts.
The activity asks you to write the summary email you'd send after a negotiation, laid out so you can reuse it: one section for each agreed term, and one for next steps.
Write a summary email template for after a negotiation, with sections for each agreed term and the next steps.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).