Quotes from Robert J. Ringer

When you deal with sick minds, never waste time trying to become a healer. The most humane act you can perform for such a person is to state things in such a way that it will make him feel better about how things work out—especially if it involves your getting paid. After all, you can cause him a great deal of stress if you allow him to believe that he might actually be paying you what he owes you.

My objective at these buyer-seller meetings was to display so much knowledge about the property and the closing of the deal that even the seller would be embarrassed to challenge my right to a commission. (If you're chuckling and shaking your head from side to side over that last comment, you're starting to get it, because my objective proved to be nothing more than wishful thinking. Sellers always challenge agents' commissions.)

Never state, in an agreement, what you want out of the deal before stating what the other party is going to get, because the other guy doesn't give a hoot about what you want. All he's interested in is what's in it for him. This is especially true of people who insist that "in order for a deal to work out, everyone has to be satisfied." Forget such babble; it's a fairy tale that will only cause you to drop your guard and lose some fingers in the process.)

I call this second phenomenon the Better-Deal Theory, which states: Before a person closes a deal, it's human nature for him to worry that there may be a better deal down the road.

The fact is that Legalman's financial survival depends upon his ability to kill deals, and the creatures who spawn those deals are more often than not salesmen, businessmen, and entrepreneurs. Where Legalman is concerned, we're talking about a literal life-or-death matter here. After all, if every deal closed smoothly, he could become an endangered species.

When a Type Number Two performs chip-replacement surgery on your wallet, all he's saying to you is: I meant from the outset to cut off your fingers when you reached for your chips, even though I assured you that was not my intention.

I also vowed that if someone refused to sign a commission agreement with me in the future—regardless of the reason—I would assume that he was a Type Number Two and walk away from the deal.

I carried a second card in my wallet that contained yet another literary masterpiece, to wit: Closing deals is so much trash, If you, my friend, don't get no cash.

If you're over twenty-one, you are certainly aware that one of the most commonly used intimidation ploys is to make a person feel guilty for concentrating too much on his own well-being.

My attitude was unyielding, solidly backed by the wisdom of the Bluff Theory, which states: The secret to bluffing is to not bluff.

Even though I still had a strong posture, in no small way aided by my having the right legal tools on my side, Ernest and the Booze Brothers were counting on my sanity and logic. Surely I would not be crazy enough to throw away the opportunity to earn a handsome, six-figure commission; surely I would see the logic in taking a $150,000 commission rather than no commission at all.

Driving over the bridge separating downtown Kansas City from the old airport, my commission check safely locked away in my briefcase, my attorney looked over at me and asked, "Well, how do you feel?" Without hesitating, I looked at him and replied, "Deserving.

I told the Booze Brothers that I would set up a conference call with Ernest, and that if we all kept calm and worked together, the "points" (that old standby word for "problems") in question could be "handled.

This time, as we went over the bridge on the way to the airport, my attorney asked me, "Well, how do you feel now?" I thought about it for a moment, then looked at him and answered, "Intimidating.

I was so busy lapping up Mr. Biggshotte's flattery that I committed an infraction on the scoring play. And that, for an experienced graduate of Screw U., is indefensible

During the ensuing heated discussion, he said two things that would ring in my ears for the remainder of my days at Screw U. First, he said, "You have a lot of nerve trying to earn $15,000 on one deal. I mean, you're only a broker." Wham—right between the eyes. Talk about painting a clear picture of how I was perceived by a lender.

Ayn Rand offered perhaps the most rational solution for dealing with slanderers when she said, "Freedom comes from seeing the ignorance of your critics and discovering the emptiness of their virtue.

By contrast, a real positive mental attitude can play a major role in one's success, but such an attitude is a result of being prepared. In other words, a true positive mental attitude is possible only through one's having the ammunition to back it up.

You develop a positive mental attitude by being good at what you do, by understanding the realities of what it takes to succeed, and by having the self-discipline to base your actions on those realities.

I guess you might say that it was a paradox of sorts in that I prepared for long-term success by bracing myself against the effects of short-term failure. I again emphasize that this philosophy works only if you are prepared to succeed. It does not work if you simply use it as an excuse to fail in a situation where it may have been possible to succeed had you tried harder or been more persistent.

Stated in theory form, what I'm talking about here is the Theory of Intimidation, which states: The results a person achieves are inversely proportionate to the degree to which he is intimidated.

When it comes to situations that don't work out, whether in my business or personal life, my motto remains: "Next!" Forget about it, move quickly on to the next deal, and let the law of averages work its wonders.