Closing a Deal at 36,000 Feet on Singapore Suites

In tech M&A, your brain is your only real asset. If you walk into a negotiation room dragging your feet from jet lag, you might as well hand the other side millions of dollars.

I had exactly three days to finalize a massive acquisition in Singapore, and I couldn't afford to be off my game for even five minutes.

Normally, I book whatever my company portal spits out. This time, I looked at the 19-hour itinerary and knew economy or even basic business class was going to destroy me.

I reached out to Michael at CEOFLIGHTS on a Friday afternoon. He understood immediately. I didn't want to hear about cheap deals that involved three layovers; I wanted the most direct, comfortable route possible, without getting completely ripped off on last-minute pricing.

Michael got me into Singapore Suites for an unbelievable $7,200 less than the airline's website was quoting. I honestly thought it was a typo until the confirmation hit my inbox.

Boarding SQ23 out of JFK at 10:30 PM, I went straight to my suite. The privacy is absolute. I spent the first four hours reviewing contracts on my laptop while eating the Book the Cook Wagyu beef, which was shockingly tender for airplane food.

Having a separate, fully flat bed right next to my seat meant I didn't have to pack away my work to sleep. I just slid over, crashed for eight hours, and woke up ready to review the term sheets again.

I will say, the only real annoyance was the connection at Changi. We hit a backup at immigration which meant my carefully planned transition to the hotel got squeezed by forty-five minutes. My driver was waiting, but it definitely spiked my blood pressure.

Still, stepping into that boardroom the next morning, I was firing on all cylinders. I closed the deal. That ticket paid for itself a hundred times over.