Running a business is no easy task. As an owner and entrepreneur, you will have to make tough decisions on a daily basis. You will also need to learn the art of negotiation to maximize business growth and profitability. One of the first lessons that you will learn when it comes to successfully negotiating with clients, suppliers, and employees is how to put your poker face to good use. If you struggle to hide your emotions, you could miss out on a world of opportunities to gain that all-important ‘edge’.
So, how can you cultivate the poker face of a self-assured CEO or leader? Here are some tips.
Don’t respond immediately
When you are in the midst of a salary discussion with a new employee or you are negotiating pricing with a supplier and they ask you a question or for your opinion, avoid responding immediately. Retain eye contact and focus on your breathing by taking a single deep breath. Doing so will give a pause to the conversation and could result in the other individual jumping in to make a better offer or suggestion.
Take up gambling in your free time
What better way to work on perfecting your poker face than by playing the actual game? If you are a beginner, the best way to get a feel for the game is to start off by playing online. Once you have mastered the basics and you feel confident in your ability to hold your own, you can consider moving on to the real deal.
Just remember to do plenty of research before choosing an online casino in which to play. The Maple Casino Games website is a wonderful resource for trustworthy reviews on the best casino game sites in Canada. Along with being safe, the great news is that many of these sites allow you to play for free if you aren’t keen on parting with your hard-earned cash.
Create a mantra
You need to have tremendous focus when you first start using your poker face. If you aren’t constantly aware of it, you could quickly forget and slowly start to let your emotions move to the surface. It can be helpful to have a mantra that you constantly repeat in your mind, such as ‘I am confident, I am calm’. Other people find it helpful to have a visual mantra instead of a verbal one. A good example is a visual image of Superman standing in his infamous ‘power pose’.
Bite your tongue
The key to a great poker face, as mentioned above, is taking your time to speak when holding a conversation. Not only does this automatically convey a strong sense of authority, but it gives you time to carefully consider your words before verbalizing them. If you struggle to do this, literally bite your tongue while the other person is speaking and only release when you feel 100% confident in what you are about to say.
Practice makes perfect. Here’s to cultivating a poker face so impressive it could rival even the most powerful of leaders and CEOs!
