I read a survey recently that talked about how many store managers have been given permission to allow you to haggle prices of products. For most major retailers, this is something that has never really happened. For example, if you walked into a Best Buy and looked to purchase a new TV, you would simply pay the price as stated and that was that. Today, some of these managers are empowered to allow for discounts should you ask for them and the key is YOU must initiate the negotiations.

Now cutting costs, operating our businesses as lean as possible is both urgent and extremely important. It certainly is for me. After 17 years in business, I returned from maternity leave to the news that three large national accounts had decided not to renew their contracts with our company. They all reported that we provided superb service, but the economic crisis they were facing required drastic measures. It wasn't a nightmare, it was real life. Our overhead devoured our profit at an alarming rate and we quickly found ourselves operating in the red.