Idea Ripper // ArchiveCards: 1555 [Live] | Updated: 2026-10-14
Card #c1363IR // #c1363Verbatim excerpt
"“I don’t want Sofia, even if she decides to take the deal. Can I get the entire IP for myself if I honor the deal?”" "“Sure,” I said. Sofia had dragged her feet. You snooze, you lose. Better to have one than none."

— Source: Cancel Me If You Can (Dave Portnoy)

[Use when]

You're negotiating with a group that is holding out and one member wants to settle.

[Why it matters]

Call Her Daddy's two hosts held out on their contract together. When Alex Cooper asked to take Portnoy's offer alone, he agreed and kept the show. Splitting a joint holdout gave him a deal with the party who wanted one.

Filed under situations:When the other side has more leverage

More from Cancel Me If You Can

#c1344"At this point the business model was pretty simple: if I could sell $3,400 worth of ads in the newspaper, I would break even."You're running a new venture on thin cash and the finances feel vague. #c1345"How do you sell ads for a newspaper that doesn’t exist? On promises."You need paying customers before you have a finished product. #c1346"I’d sift through all my competitors’ publications in Boston and call every single one of their advertisers every single week to poach them…You're looking for your first customers and your competitors publish who theirs are.

Same situation, different book

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