One of my mentors Clinton Swaine of Frontier Trainings takes that one step further which is “Ask 6 Times For Exactly What I Want.” It doesn’t necessarily have to be 6 times, it’s more about the ask and being persistent to get to yes.  Often times we just don’t ask.  Our culture in the U.S. is one where we have been taught not to push the envelope in many situations, just accept things as they are.  That doesn’t work when you want to accomplish something, get something changed or not be taken advantage of.  Asking, speaking up is necessary to make things happen.

One month I was out of town and forgot to make a payment on an account.  I had never been late before so had a good track record.  The bank has an automatic program that charges a late fee when you are late with a payment.  It’s a $30 late fee.  I wasn’t willing to accept that so thought I would ask if they would give me a courtesy consideration and remove the charge because I had never been late before and this was a one-time mistake.  Guess what?  They removed the charge. It would not have had the possibility of being removed had I not asked.

Bottom line, be willing to ask for what you want no matter what the circumstances.  You might be told no, but you won’t be told yes to anything you don’t ask for.