THE POWER OF LEVERAGE: THE PRINCIPLE OF MAXIMUM ACHIEVEMENT

THE POWER OF LEVERAGE: THE PRINCIPLE OF MAXIMUM ACHIEVEMENT

I will rather earn 1% off 100 people's  effort  than 100% of my own  efforts- John D. Rockefeller

Many hands make work light.

Leverage is defined as the Ability to influence a system, or an environment, in a way that multiplies the outcome of one’s efforts without a corresponding increase in the consumption of resources. 

 ~ Business Dictionary

What things are you doing right now that really aren’t that important? Or, even if they are important, perhaps someone else could do them for you? If money is a factor, get creative. What service could you offer on trade? Could you find a delivery service that saves you the time of picking things up—like your lunch, groceries or dry cleaning? Can you look for an intern who can support your business outcomes?

Do what you do best. Get others to do the rest.

Look for the patterns of things that tend to show up consistently for you. Are there systems you could put in place rather than repeating the same actions over and over again? For example, do you travel a lot? Could you arrange or inventory your clothes so that you don’t have to think about them when it’s time to pack? Could you get a separate toiletries bag that’s always stocked? What about sending cards to your colleagues, associates, friends or family? Are there services that will send cards every month to all your key people, already addressed and stamped?

The secret is to think creatively—if you’re doing things consistently that are taking up your time and are not fulfilling, then it’s time to break that pattern and come up with alternatives! Remember, there’s always a way if you’re committed.

RELATED : How To Increase Your Business's Value Online ( 3 Ways)

Leverage vs. Delegation

There’s a big difference between leverage and delegation. Your goal is to leverage as much as possible to other people, but to maintain the overall responsibility for achieving the result.

Delegation is taking a result or action you’re responsible for and giving it to someone else without any additional follow-up. You’re delegating the entire responsibility on a hope and a prayer it will actually get done, and get done right. Leverage is working with another individual to produce a result or action. The other individual may do most, or even all of the work, but you’re actively involved by clarifying the outcome needed, checking in and helping solve challenges that may come up along the way. You’re leveraging the work, but you’re maintaining responsibility and ownership of the result you’re after.

Leverage, used properly, is one of the most powerful ways to get more done in a shorter period of time. The key is to take the time up front to clarify the outcome, put the necessary systems and resources in place and make sure that you monitor the progress so you get the results you desire.

How To Increase Your Business's Value Online ( 3 Ways)

How To Increase Your Business's Value Online ( 3 Ways)

Entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for profitable online businesses, which results in a lot of buyers and very few sellers. This is great news for anyone who owns an established and profitable website. Buyers are aplenty, and they're hungry for great websites.

But before you start mentally spending what you will get from the sale, it's worth bearing in mind that buyers today are extremely selective. Ten years ago, they were recklessly throwing money at anything with a .com name and a promise of potential. But after losing their shirt, they wised up, and now they won't part with their money unless they see a sure thing.

The ironic thing is that many sellers are their own worst enemy. They think selling their website is a spontaneous thing, and everything can be done in five minutes. But in actual fact, the opposite is true. The most profitable website acquisitions are planned far in advance, to maximize value and increase the chances of a sale.

So how can you maximize the value of your website? What mistakes should you avoid? Many of the most common mistakes are relatively easy to identify. Here are three you should avoid, to increase the value of your website.

1. They don't outsource effectively.

Generally speaking, entrepreneurs have difficulty finding balance. On one hand, many have difficulty outsourcing jobs. The result is an extremely high-workload business.

On the other end of the spectrum are entrepreneurs who outsource every aspect of their business in an attempt to live the four hour work week. Both of these extremes can be damaging to the value of your website.

Buyers love websites that are easy to transfer and do not require high levels of workload. For this reason, the entrepreneur who micromanages every aspect of their online business will find that buyers will run away fast from buying the business.

Buyers do not want to buy a job. If the current owner is too heavily involved in every aspect of the business, this makes a sale virtually impossible.

But don't be so fast to outsource work to lessen the workload. Even though potential buyers love low-workload businesses, they also like profits. And outsourcing jobs costs money which eats into the bottom line. The more outsourcing costs, the more you will destroy the value of your site.

The best way to solve this problem would be to selectively outsource. In other words, you need to calculate what you need your hourly earnings to be and only outsource if you can save money by doing so.

RELATED : Thinking You Are Too Old to Start Up?

2. They keep needless risk in their businesses.

In February 2011, thousands of site owners discovered they had built their websites on quicksand. Their strong rankings in Google made them believe they would continue to receive a high amount of traffic to succeed. But then Google rolled out their Panda update, and subsequently the floor collapsed beneath those very same people.

The difficulty is entrepreneurs often have trouble seeing the risk in their own businesses. This is because: 1) the longer we live with risk, the less we think it exists, and 2) entrepreneurs tend to be ridiculously optimistic people.

It is not uncommon for someone to grow comfortable with risk even if it is staring them in the face. A classic example are the thousands of residents who live along the San Andreas fault. Or the developers who continue to build in that area despite the fact that a major earthquake is predicted in that region within 30 years.

This is the same with entrepreneurs -- they don't see the fault line in their businesses.

Secondly, entrepreneurs tend to be unfazed by failures and optimistic that success is always around the corner. This optimism is useful since it helps them take the risks that build key businesses and services, but it also can be an disadvantage.

Therefore, entrepreneurs need to learn how to identify and mitigate risk within their websites, by focusing on five key areas:

1. Single points of failure. Is there any area of your business that, should it fail, would cause irreparable and severe damage to the rest of the business? For example, using only one vendor, or having only one source of website traffic?
2. External dependencies. Is your business dependent on another business's success, or outside events? For example, if you specialize in helping people gain Twitter followers, you are dependent on Twitter's continued success.
3. Key man risk. Is your business dependent on you alone or one particular employee? For example, bloggers and podcasters tend to build a business on the strength of their unique voices.
4. No barriers to entry. How difficult would it be for a competitor to enter into your niche or space? If anyone can just walk in and start a similar business then that is a significant risk and potential buyers will be worried about copycats crowding the marketplace.
5. Market risks. You can't control your industry, but your industry can control you. A contracting industry or marketplace can directly impact your business and its future viability. This could be a sign that you should exit earlier than you expected, or that you need to change your business strategy.

RELATED : 8 Daily Habits That Will Make This Year More Explosive

3. They get their timing wrong.

If there is one thing that influences the price and salability of your website, it is timing and trending. If you sell too early, you could leave too much money on the table. Sell too late and you could lose an equal amount of potential money.

I recently came across a scenario in which waiting helped a client add significant value to their business. The website in question was growing at an astonishing rate -- an annual growth of over 250 percent. At this rate of growth, I explained, buyers would have trouble betting on the recent most successful months as a “new normal” and would want to focus instead on the past year which included several significantly lower volume months. By waiting until his business established a “new normal” baseline for earnings over several months, buyers would be more inclined to pay accordingly.

Then there are the owners who hold on to their websites for far too long. When a website begins to decline in traffic, revenue, or earnings, its value drops at an even faster rate. Declining trends need to be reversed which usually means more money and a lot of gambling.

So when is the best time to sell? When your website has moderate, but steady growth, and well before it experiences a downturn in earnings or traffic.

There are literally dozens of factors that influence website value, but you don't need to maximize each and every factor. Pay attention to the big issues above and you'll be well on your way to maximizing your online business's value.In the end, you'll be glad you did.

9 Things Remarkably Successful People Never Do

9 Things Remarkably Successful People Never Do

Possibly you've stopped paying attention. Or possibly you've fallen into bad habits. Or possibly you've grown complacent.

Whatever the reasons, you're now compromising, settling, or flying on unhappy autopilot.

Remarkably successful people don't compromise on their standards. They don't settle for less than what they hope to achieve. And they definitely don't put their lives on autopilot. They believe success only comes from intention and action--and so they live that way.

Here are nine things remarkably successful people never do:

1. They never let the past dictate their future.

We all have limitations. We all have challenges. We all make mistakes. The key is to not be constrained by those things but to learn from them.

Easier said than done? It all depends on your perspective. Take mistakes: When something goes wrong, turn it into an opportunity to learn something you didn't know--especially about yourself. (And when something goes wrong for someone else,turn it into an opportunity to be gracious and forgiving.)

Where you've been, what you've done--everything in the past is just training.

Remarkably successful people believe their past should inform them but should neverdefine them.

2. They never gossip.

It's hard to resist the inside scoop. Finding out the reasons behind someone's decisions, the motivations behind someone's actions, the skinny behind someone's hidden agenda--much less whether Hugo is really dating Jeanette in accounting--those conversations are hard to resist.

Unfortunately, the person who gossips about other people is also gossiping aboutyou. And suddenly gossip isn't so much fun.

The next time you're tempted to talk about another person, think about whether you would say what you're about to say to that person.

And the next time someone starts to talk about someone else, excuse yourself and walk away. Don't worry that you'll lose a gossiper's respect; anyone willing to gossip doesn't respect other people anyway.

When remarkably successful people want to share the inside scoop, they just speak openly about their own thoughts and feelings. That way they're not gossiping. They're just being genuine.

3. They never say "yes" when they really mean "no."

Refusing a request from colleagues, customers, or even friends is really hard. But rarely does saying no go over as badly as you expect. Most people will understand, and if they don't, should you care too much about what they think?

When you say no, you only feel bad for a few moments. When you agree to something you really don't want to do, you may feel bad for a long time--or at least as long as it takes you to do what you didn't want to do in the first place.

Remarkably successful people practice saying no. They've gotten really good at saying no. They know that lets them focus on doing what they really need to do: for themselves and for other people.

RELATED : 7 Habits Of Successful People Before Bedtime

4. They never interrupt.

When you interrupt someone, what you're really saying is, "I'm not thinking about what you are saying. I'm thinking about what I want to say ... and what I want to say is so important you need to hear it now."

Want better professional relationships? Want better personal relationships? Listen, truly listen, to what other people say. Then ask questions to make sure you understand.

Remarkably successful people already know what they think--they want to learn from what everyone else thinks.

5. They're never late (without an incredibly good reason).

I know. You're overwhelmed. So you're always running behind. It stresses you out like crazy.

And it makes other people resent you like crazy. Whenever you're late, other people rightly assume you feel your time is more important than theirs. (Which, of course, kills your chance of building an outstanding personal or professional relationship.)

Although you may believe you can't help it, being late is a choice. You allow yourself to be late.

Remarkably successful people start the day a little day earlier. They arrive early to their first scheduled event. They don't worry that they'll waste time--they plan ahead and bring along whatever they need to use any "early" time to get a few simple things done.

Then they feel a lot less stressed and as a result are more insightful, more creative, more decisive, and simply more "on" in everything they do.

6. They never resent.

Take it from Nelson Mandela: "Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies."

The same holds for bitterness. And jealousy. And dislike.

When you hold on to ill will, the only person who loses is you.

Remarkably successful people put all that emotional energy into focusing not on what others have done but on what they themselves will do.

7. They never decide they don't have the time.

Everyone knows someone who just seems to get a lot more done than other people. It's the craziest thing. How do these folks do it? They must have no life, right?

Actually they have a great life: They've figured out what is important to them and they're making it happen.

Figure out what's important to you. Strip away all the stuff that isn't. Then make it happen.

We're all given the same amount of time. The only difference is how we use our time.

Remarkably successful people use their time.

RELATED : 8 Daily Habits That Will Make 2015 More Explosive

8. They never fit in (just to fit in).

Though entire industries are based on making us think otherwise, no one actually likes us for the clothes we wear, the car we drive, or the house we live in. No one likes us for our titles, either.

Those are all "things," and while other people may in fact like our "things," that doesn't mean they like you. (And even if they do, that doesn't mean you like yourself.)

Remarkably successful people have decided to simply be who they are. By not trying to fit in or make an artificial impression they know they might lose a bunch of acquaintances, but they know they'll also gain a few real friends.

9. They're never afraid to do the things that matter.

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself," is true, but in some ways a better quote might be, "The only thing we have to fear is ourselves."

Why? We're all afraid. We're scared of what might or might not happen. We're scared of what we can't change. We're scared of what we won't be able to do. We're scared of how others might perceive us.

And that makes us hesitate, wait for the right moment, decide we need to think a little longer or do some more research or explore a few more alternatives, and days, weeks, months, and even years pass us by.

And so do our dreams.

Don't let your fears hold you back. Whatever you've been planning, whatever you've imagined, whatever you've dreamed of, get started on it today. If you want to start a business, take the first step. If you want to change careers, take the first step. If you want to expand or enter a new market or design new products or services, take the first step.

Remarkably successful people put their fears aside and get started. They do something. They do anything.

Remarkably successful people are often afraid, but they're most afraid of looking back and thinking, "If only I had ..."

Don't look back and think, "If only I had ..."

11 Things Young Entrepreneurs Need To Stop Doing

11 Things Young Entrepreneurs Need To Stop Doing.

Our generation is responsible for a lot of annoying trends like taking pics of every meal we eat to taking Vine videos while trying to drive.  But for all you young people seeking success, there are a few trends that just need to be killed unless you want the world to think our entire generation is hopelessly conceited. Here are seven trends that young entrepreneurs need to stop doing now. 

1. Sharing on social media. 

As you start to come up in success, you’re going to want to share all amazing things you are achieving with your peers on social media. It feels awesome and it provides great validation. But everything in moderation is always best. Think about what you can do with half the energy you use to brag about yourself and apply it to giving back in some way. 

2. Being on your phone all the time. 

We get it, you have many important things to do and you constantly need to be on your phone so you miss out on important emails, tweets, texts etc. But you need to take time out of your day to recharge at some point. This will keep you sane and prevent you from getting burnt out, trust me. 

3. Focusing on having a great title. 

The title you hold at your startup or company may matter on the surface, but overtime, it will be your work that speaks your value. Anyone can give themselves a title of “CEO of X company”, but actually building something great is a whole different story. 

4. Not taking care of yourself. 

A lot of young people go by the “live fast, die young” motto or they think that just because they are young they can get away with not taking care of themselves for now.  If you’re smart, then you know that being healthy is a top priority. What good is success or money if you are too beat later on in life to enjoy it?  Eat right, sleep, don’t get wasted all the time. You want to live forever don’t you? In the words of Apple Co-founder Ron Wayne, you don’t want to end up being “the richest man in the cemetery.” 

RELATED : How To Become A Millionaire By Age 30

5. Talking so damn much. 

I think almost every veteran entrepreneur has said it: STOP TALKING AND START DOING! Anyone can talk about how great they are what they are going to do to change the world, but actually executing it is a completely different story. As the old saying goes: action speaks louder than words. 

6. Focusing on wanting to just build a company.

Don’t misinterpret this point! What I mean is that many young entrepreneurs I’ve come across focus on making money or creating a cool company. A true entrepreneur analyzes markets, finds problems, and picks the one he/she is most passionate in to solve. 

7. Trying to fit “the image.” 

I see many young aspiring entrepreneurs who will go out of their way to buy material goods that are way beyond what they can afford just to look successful. They’ll party every weekend and buy bottles so they can look like ballers. I believe the whole “fake it ‘til you make it” is incredibly bad advice. While looking presentable is beneficial, focusing too much on being someone you’re not yet will delude you from building something great that will give you real success down the road. Also, it’s just bad money management to spend on luxury items you can’t afford. If you can’t manage your own sh*t, how can anyone trust you to manage your next company? 

8. Feeling that the world owes you something.

You are not that special and no one owes you anything. In this world, you work your ass off for your success. It will not get served to you in a silver platter. It doesn’t matter what your parents or ancestors did, their successes do not belong to you. Stop feeling so entitled! 

9. Thinking you can become a billionaire by exiting a company that doesn’t earn any revenue. 

I feel like recent acquisition offers of certain companies like Instagram and SnapChat has given some aspiring entrepreneurs unrealistic expectations of what they can achieve with their startup. While anything is possible, the core reason that a business survives in the long-run is that it makes money. No matter how good your idea is, you need to have a solid plan of how your business is going to monetize and survive long-term. In the words of Scott Gerber from YEC: “I think that’s the stupidest way to think about business because at the end of the day, less than probably 2% of people that start a business are ever going to see a dollar of real investment money.” 

RELATED : 8 Daily Habits That Will Make 2015 More Explosive

10. Stop being so ADD. 

In the age of new media where everything is on demand and everyone is struggling to grab everyones attention, it’s important to not let yourself get distracted all the time. While having an open-mind and trying things is important, learning to stay focused on one thing is more important. This will help you get things done and grow whatever you’re trying to grow. There are no shortcuts in life, so take it one step at a time. 

11. Focusing too much on women. 

This obviously applies to heterosexual male entrepreneurs, but if you’re looking to build an amazing company, that should be the only thing you’re thinking about 24/7. In a blog post on The Bulletproof Executive: “At the recent BIL Conference, I spoke with a successful entrepreneur based in LA who runs a popular blog. He told me, “I made the most money and progressed my career the most when I was single and wasn’t getting any. I spoke with a NY Times best selling author about this over dinner while gathering research for this biohack. He asked that I not use his name, but he described a time when he made a deal with his wife that he would not orgasm until he made $250,000, which was a very considerable sum for his family. With that kind of motivation, he achieved the goal in 30 days.” As Mr. Landis said in “I Think I Love My Wife,” “You can lose lots of money chasing women, but you will NEVER lose women chasing money.” Focus on what your priorities are and all the pleasures of life will eventually fall into place

8 Daily Habits That Will Make This Year More Explosive

8 Daily Habits That Will Make This Year  More Explosive

The new year is here and most entrepreneurs are looking at how they will raise their game in 2015. Many of you may want to ramp up your personal development and productivity to a whole new level to reach some major goals.

When it comes to finding success and achieving your goals, many times the most important struggle is the one that you encounter in mundane daily life. To truly find success in your life, it is important that you take the time to do the little things that matter most. Small changes to your daily routine can translate into monumental success in all of your endeavors.

Here are eight things that you should be doing, if you aren’t already, habitually.

1. Get up early

Getting up early is about more than just getting up on time. When you get up early, before most people, you have a quiet and relaxing time to get things done. Imagine being able to sit down and go through emails or handle daily tasks without your message notification buzzing or your phone going off.

By getting up early, you are not only giving yourself some extra time in the morning, but you are giving yourself some extra valuable time that will allow you to get even more done.

2. Read

You should be reading every single day. Never let a day go by that you don’t grow in some area of your life. This doesn’t necessarily mean crushing an entire novel in a few hours, but put aside a little time to read, preferably 20 to 30 minutes.

When you read you help stimulate your thought processes, and may be surprised by the ideas that you come up with. Reading things such as magazines or newspapers can also help you stay abreast of the world around you, a trait that can only be helpful, no matter what industry you work in.

3. Exercise

Even if it is just for 30 minutes, it is important to start exercising daily. Exercise can help release endorphins that can naturally boost your mood and your energy levels. Not only will you feel happier and more energized but those who work out regularly report lower levels of stress.

RELATED : 7 Habits Of Successful People Before Bedtime

4. Practice gratitude

This can be a hard one for some people and it’s something that unfortunately many of us need to consciously practice. When our lives get consumed with work and personal demands it can be hard to remember to show gratitude to those that we interact with. Try to make a conscious effort to practice this.

As it starts to become more natural, you will be surprised by how many doors open and how many new relationship you can form by showing sincere gratitude to those around you.

5. Schedule your day before it starts

Having a set schedule is a powerful tool when it comes to making the most of your day and being as productive as possible. To have the biggest impact with your time, try making your schedule the day before. This way the moment you wake up you will know just what is ahead.

6. Focus on high-priority tasks first

Many people actually often put their high-priority tasks on the backburner and end up saving them until the last minute. This may be because the task is daunting, or because they think they will have more time to dedicate to the endeavor.

No matter what the reasoning is, challenge yourself by starting with focusing on your high-priority task. Get it done first and then focus on smaller things. After being in the mindset of tackling a high-priority project, your less demanding tasks will be easier to complete. It's a small change but one that can improve your effectiveness drastically.

RELATED : How To Become A Millionaire By Age 30

7. Always go the extra mile

Do a few extra (meaningful) tasks every day that go beyond what your actual requirements are. This can mean just a few extra sales calls beyond your quota, or working for an extra 30 minutes before shutting down.

By putting in a little more effort than required you can start getting the attention of your superiors or clients, get more done during the workday and feel a new energizing sense of motivation and satisfaction.

8. Improve in one area each day

This area can be something small or large and it can be in your personal or professional life, but make it a goal to improve in one area of your life every day. This can be improving your jogging speed while you work out, getting more emails done in a certain time period or improving on your elevator pitch.

No matter what it is, take the time to really try to improve one small thing, and before you know it the improvements in your personal and professional life will surprise you.

Share and Leave Comments Please.. Thank you!!!

How to Become a Millionaire by Age 30

Becoming a Millionaire by Age 30

By Grant Cardone

Getting rich and becoming a millionaire is a taboo topic. Saying it can be done by the age of 30 seems like a fantasy. 

Here are the 10 steps that will guarantee you will become a millionaire by 30.

1. Follow the money. 

In today’s economic environment you cannot save your way to millionaire status. The first step is to focus on increasing your income in increments and repeating that. My income was $3,000 a month and nine years later it was $20,000 a month. Start following the money and it will force you to control revenue and see opportunities.

2. Don’t show off -- show up! 

I didn’t buy my first luxury watch or car until my businesses and investments were producing multiple secure flows of income. I was still driving a Toyota Camry when I had become a millionaire. Be known for your work ethic, not the trinkets that you buy.

3. Save to invest, don’t save to save. 

The only reason to save money is to invest it.  Put your saved money into secured, sacred (untouchable) accounts. Never use these accounts for anything, not even an emergency. This will force you to continue to follow step one (increase income). To this day, at least twice a year, I am broke because I always invest my surpluses into ventures I cannot access.

4. Avoid debt that doesn’t pay you. 

Make it a rule that you never use debt that won’t make you money. I borrowed money for a car only because I knew it could increase my income. Rich people use debt to leverage investments and grow cash flows. Poor people use debt to buy things that make rich people richer.

RELATED : 7 Habits Of Successful People Before Bedtime

5. Treat money like a jealous lover. 

Millions wish for financial freedom, but only those that make it a priority have millions. To get rich and stay rich you will have to make it a priority. Money is like a jealous lover. Ignore it and it will ignore you, or worse, it will leave you for someone who makes it a priority.

6. Money doesn’t sleep. 

Money doesn’t know about clocks, schedules or holidays, and you shouldn’t either. Money loves people that have a great work ethic. When I was 26 years old, I was in retail and the store I worked at closed at 7 p.m. Most times you could find me there at 11 p.m. making an extra sale. Never try to be the smartest or luckiest person -- just make sure you outwork everyone.

7. Poor makes no sense. 

I have been poor, and it sucks. I have had just enough and that sucks almost as bad. Eliminate any and all ideas that being poor is somehow OK. Bill Gates has said, "If you’re born poor, it’s not your mistake. But if you die poor, it is your mistake."

8. Get a millionaire mentor. 

Most of us were brought up middle class or poor and then hold ourselves to the limits and ideas of that group. I have been studying millionaires to duplicate what they did. Get your own personal millionaire mentor and study them. Most rich people are extremely generous with their knowledge and their resources.

RELATED : Why You should Follow Your Dreams And Live The Life You Have Imagined.

9. Get your money to do the heavy lifting. 

Investing is the Holy Grail in becoming a millionaire and you should make more money off your investments than your work. If you don’t have surplus money you won’t make investments. The second company I started required a $50,000 investment. That company has paid me back that $50,000 every month for the last 10 years. My third investment was in real estate, where I started with $350,000, a large part of my net worth at the time. I still own that property today and it continues to provide me with income. Investing is the only reason to do the other steps, and your money must work for you and do your heavy lifting.

10. Shoot for $10 million, not $1 million. 

The single biggest financial mistake I’ve made was not thinking big enough. I encourage you to go for more than a million. There is no shortage of money on this planet, only a shortage of people thinking big enough.

Apply these 10 steps and they will make you rich. Steer clear of people that suggest your financial dreams are born of greed. Avoid get-rich-quick schemes, be ethical, never give up, and once you make it, be willing to help others get there too.

Leave Comments Please. Thank You!!!

How to negotiate a better salary

5 rules to negotiate a better salary

BY SAMUEL DODOBI NAR-OKUNOR

Between networking, polishing your resume, applying and interviewing, finding a job is time consuming. Once the offer comes in, all your hard work is done, right? Not necessarily. Now is the time for negotiating - a process few people are comfortable with. Skipping it, however, can mean that you miss out on better benefits or a higher salary.

"You should always negotiate a higher salary," says Vanessa Jackson, director of career services at The Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago. "Hiring managers expect this, so they do not start by offering the highest salary in their range."

Rule 1: Be polite

 The first rule when it comes to negotiating is to always be polite. "Say 'Thank you very much for this opportunity. I am so excited to join your company.' Then move into the negotiation," says Shannon Delecki, assistant director of career services at The Art Institute of Michigan.

Your requests should never sound like demands. If they do, you could negotiate your way right out of a job. Remember, the negotiation is a balancing act. You want a higher salary but you're looking to work with the person on the other end of the negotiation, so be respectful and use good manners always.

Rule 2: Know your worth

Make sure you've done your research. "Know the average salaries for the position and for the market," says Delecki. That means what others with similar experience would make in the same city where you'll be working.

And this isn't a time to be modest about your potential value to the company. "Tell the company why you are worth more than you are being offered. Show them how you will contribute to the company's profits and help their bottom line," advises Delecki.

RELATED : Common Student Money Misconceptions 

Rule 3: Ask for the right amount

Ask for too little and you'll sell yourself short, but if you ask for too much you'll risk offending your future employer. How much should you ask for? Jackson recommends anywhere from $3,000 - $5,000 above the company's offer. After conveying your gratitude for the job offer, confidently state: "I'm hoping to negotiate a salary closer to $XX."

Rule 4: Don't forget other benefits

There are times that companies may not be able to budge on the dollar amount, but that doesn't mean negotiations are done. This could be an opportunity to negotiate other benefits like paid time off. "Ask the company whether they can be more flexible about vacation or PTO days," says Delecki.

In addition to vacation days, other benefits that you could try to negotiate for include flex time for working from home and subsidized day-care costs. "I've known people who negotiated for immediate vesting in the company's 401(k)," observes Jackson.

Rule 5: Be realistic

Keep in mind, people negotiating higher-level jobs will likely have more success negotiating. If you are just out of college and accepting an entry-level job, employers typically will not negotiate much, if at all. Young professionals can always ask, but they must be realistic about what they should ask for and about what an employer is likely to approve.

 Must watch video from a certified personnel consultant on human resources!!