Bengaluru Professional Claims He Deliberately Looks Poor To Negotiate Harder: "I Sold My iPhone"

A Bengaluru working professional has caught social media's attention for his unconventional strategy to come out on the right side of any negotiation. In a LinkedIn post, the man named Meenank Minnu detailed that he deliberately chose to look poor, which made him negotiate harder. Highlighting that 'anonymity' was 'underrated', Minnu said he had sold his iPhone for a Vivo and MacBook for an ASUS laptop, whilst driving a decade-old car.

"I always try to look poor. It makes me negotiate harder. I sold my iPhone. Bought a Vivo. Sold my MacBook. Bought an ASUS. I still drive a 10-year-old hatchback barely surviving E20 fuel," said Minnu.

The Bengaluru man said he could afford the new car and gadgets but added that once someone looks rich, 'everything gets more expensive'. Minnu claimed that, from the price of products to traffic fines, everything increases when people perceive someone as rich.

"Rs 20/kg potatoes become Rs 28. A Rs 500 traffic fine somehow becomes Rs 1,500. Rs 200 back cover comes for Rs 700 because it's an iPhone. No one asks you to lend money which they'll never repay,” Minnu continued.

He added that the funny part was that his ASUS laptop was more expensive than the MacBook, while the Android smartphone was more costly than the iPhone.

"The goal was never to look rich. The goal was to stop paying the "looks rich" tax. This is how business is done in India. The real wealthy of India isn't hanging out in starbucks, but old school cafes negotiating million dollar deals," he added.

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Social Media Reactions

As the post gained traction, one of the social media users said: "This is a refreshing take on value over vanity. In my experience, the most effective negotiators never show their hand or their bank account."

Another commented: "The ending really stood out to me. Sometimes the less attention we attract, the more authentic our experiences become. Great lesson!"

A third said: "I prefer to buy things for my actual work and use cases based on what's the best value and efficiency for me. Idga* about whether the world things I'm rich or poor, I've learnt to say no and accept that some things will happen to you irrespective of how you look or present yourself."