Looking for a new job can be stressful business. You have to find time to write cover letters, update your resume, and follow leads straight into the ground. All the while, you’re trying to pitch yourself, make yourself look good, and catch everyone’s attention. It can be utterly exhausting. You get tired of constantly trying to sell yourself to everyone. You’re tired of fielding emails and doubling back and following up. You wish you could just land one job that you’d like to keep for a while. That is until jobs start giving you offers, but they’re not the offers you were expecting. 

Negotiation is a skill on its own, and not everyone has it. The most skilled negotiators play tricks on the mind and use all sorts of psychological techniques in order to get you on their side. But if you’re not adept at these games, or refuse to play them, you might end up being played.