How aggressive can I get when negotiating the terms of an employment agreement without jeopardizing a possible long-term relatinship?

Believing that you may be pushing too hard in your contract negotiations is a common concern. You may fear that hard feelings will develop even before employment begins.  But if you are convinced of your value. fight for the terms you feel are important to personal job satisfaction.

You should never allow negotiating squeamishness to prevent you from getting the right deal for you.   Neither you nor your employer will be well-served if you accept the position and then are miserable because you are dissatisfied with aspects of your employment that you failed to negotiate. In a small group practice, it’s not uncommon for the owners to make a take-it-or-leave-it offer because they don’t want to give the new employee a deal that is significantly different from what other physician employees in the practice received. If you experience this or feel you hit a brick wall in reaching an agreement on any key term, let your attorney pick up the negotiations.  However, in the end, you will have to decide whether to accept the opportunity.