IS IT A BAD IDEA TO CUT A DEAL ?
One of our clients used this during a break in a recent training session to cut a deal back home . She left the room during the break and used it to suggest an alternative solution that her colleague had been resisting . His reply was straightforward : No , it wouldn ’ t be . And the deal was made .
THE POWER OF NO-ORIENTED QUESTIONS
I actually ask everyone who works with me to only use no-oriented questions™ with me late in the day . Science tells us we ’ re only capable of making a certain number of decisions every day , and by the end of the day , our brains start to wear out . This is why people like Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs have been notorious for wearing the same thing every day . They ’ re not interested in burning up mental decision power on what shirt to wear when the decisions they make every day are worth millions of dollars .
When someone asks me a Calibrated Question™ that begins with what or how and I ’ m fatigued , I likely won ’ t answer until the next day . If they give me a “ Is this a bad idea ?” type of question , I actually find myself quickly focusing — and even getting a little bit of energy — and being able to answer .
Practice makes perfect . Use these communication skills in low-stakes scenarios , like the next time you ’ re checking out with a clerk or on the phone with your cable company . ( Think : Would it be ridiculous for you to give a loyal customer like me the same deal you give new subscribers ?)
Is it a bad idea to leverage the natural human inclination to say no to get things done ?
Well , what do you think ?
Chris Voss is the CEO of The Black Swan Group , a firm that solves business negotiation problems with hostage negotiation strategies . Chris is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Southern California ( USC ) Marshall School of Business and Georgetown University ’ s McDonough School of Business , where he teaches business negotiation in both MBA programs . Chris is the internationally acclaimed best-selling author of Never Split The Difference .
Find out more at BlackSwanLTD . com
MSPSUCCESS . COM | 9