Good morning and welcome to The Closer, the newsletter all about deals. Today’s edition is short and sharp — one tactic, backed by research, to help you negotiate smarter. No headlines, no noise — just a Nugget you can deploy by lunchtime.
If you have a friend trying to work something out – a big deal, a tricky negotiation – please forward this to them.
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COGNITIVE LOAD
EXPLOITATION
Closer Tactic #68 • Deal Psychology
Most people present simple offers.
Strategic negotiators use complexity as a weapon.
The Nugget
Complex deal structures can favor the party who understands them better.
When private equity firms acquire companies, they often structure deals with multiple tranches, earnouts, and contingencies that overwhelm target company management. Apollo Global Management is known for this approach—their complex structures often result in better effective prices because the other side focuses on headline numbers rather than total economic impact.
How to Deploy
• Introduce complexity in areas where you have expertise advantages
• Use multiple variables to obscure your real priorities
• Simplify only the elements that favor your position
Avoid complexity that confuses you too or that seems deliberately obfuscating.
Takeaway
Complexity favors the party who understands it better.
Reply with a time complexity worked for or against you—
we might feature you (and send a mug).
