“Varun, Your Negotiation System Won’t Work Because…”

It was a new high!

I had just launched the Ultimate Guide to Negotiate a Raise to amazing reviews. Everyone around me was excited, and I was dreaming about the future of Beyond Grad.

And who doesn’t want to feel that rush!

But then, I was meet with a speed bump in my lofty existence.

A friend of mine said, “Varun, your negotiation system won’t work at all in India because the managers here are shrewd. They have seen every system in the book.”

A.K.A., “I don’t think your system can ‘fool’ my manager, or any manager in India.”

(He had clearly not read the article because you don’t fool them, you work with them.)

I was in India on a 5-month work trial (a trial I had negotiated), and I was expecting someone to be a “Special Snowflake.”

I know, because I have acted like a “Special Snowflake” too.

What is a special snowflake?

I heard the term from my mentor Ramit Sethi.

Special Snowflake Syndrome is where we disqualify ourselves from taking action by assuming that our situation is “special.”

In the same way, as every snowflake is unique, we feel we are unique too. Even though our situation is mainstream or our mental barriers common.

Here is an example where I acted like a Special Snowflake to avoid taking up a new challenge.

I got over the syndrome, bought the course, and applied it to my day job. The strategies improved the company bottom line by 8.57% in the first year.

Are you a Special Snowflake too?

We all have fears.

Especially when starting something new. Or something challenging.

The fear is real, but rather than tackling it, we focus on disqualifying ourselves.

Instead of trying, we take the easy way out. “Ahh, this doesn’t work for me because I don’t have a red BMW 3-series with one tire different than the other three.”

Or, “I cannot negotiate a raise because I am on contract with a large Asian company who is known for not giving raises.”

So, is there a snowflake reason you are using to stop yourself from taking a new step? Which when unlocked, will open you up to new benefits.

Share it with me in the comments or via email.

-Varun

 

P.S. This question requires some introspection. It is easy to repeat what I said, “No you don’t understand, I do have problems specific to me.” You will find yourself in a self-created feedback loop. Top performers give snowflake reasons as well, but they can realize if a barrier is authentic or not and move past them.