A Deal is a Deal

“Deals work best when each side gets something it wants from the other.”

• Donald Trump, “The Art of the Deal”

 

The Deal

You work very hard to bring new clients to your business.

Whether they are buying or selling a property, looking for a consultant, or having a new idea to bring to market, you’ve done your part to create a successful rapport.  They like you, you like them, and everything has been going well so far.  It’s even gotten to the point where your client is ready to make a decision.  Perhaps they’ve even given you the go-ahead.

But then, all of a sudden, they back out of the deal.

What do you do?

You were not only really excited about helping this client but were counting on the commission, in need of the work to keep staff busy, or were looking at the reputation this project would bring.

Believe it or not, it’s not the first or last time a client will change their mind so late in the game.  That being said, it never gets easier each time it happens.  And, even if it’s never happened to you, it’s good to have some strategies to help you cope in case it does.

Reasons for Backing Out

There are many reasons why people would back out of a deal, as hard as those reasons are to believe.

It’s like when someone gets cold feet on their wedding day.  It seems unheard of — that it only happens in movies or that if it does happen, it’s easy to convince the hesitant person to get back in there.

Consequences

This blog is not legal advice, and the consequences are as varied as the types of deals being struck.  However, here are some consequences.

• They might lose their down payment.
• They may have to pay the difference in the final closing amount.
• Other legal repercussions, for instance, they could be sued by the seller.
• They may still have to pay commissions.

The Bible

The reason for this blog is that for believers, a deal should be a deal.

And the Bible has a lot to say about making deals.

First, what about deals that are not deals?  The Devil took Jesus into the wilderness and tested him with three deals (Matthew 4:1-11).  Turn stones into bread, throw yourself off the temple, and give Jesus all the kingdoms of the world were the deals.  Jesus knew that each was not a deal but a lie and a false promise.  He had the power of the Word of God.

Second, we all try to make deals with God.  This is displayed in David’s frustration in Psalms 73:13-14.

Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure
and have washed my hands in innocence.
¹⁴ All day long I have been afflicted,
and every morning brings new punishments.

Many religious people believe they should be able to avoid the calamities afflicting the less pious.  They believe, in effect, that they can make a deal with God — ‘I’ll do what You want so that You do what I want.’  It doesn’t work that way.

Finally, Isaiah 55:11 says,

“So shall My word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to Me void.  But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

If you tell someone you’re going to do something, do it.  Your word is your bond.

No one wants to be in a relationship with someone they can’t trust.  Promising to do something or giving a person your word but failing to keep it undermines and tears away at the very fabric of the relationship.

Keep your word and make a deal be a deal.