Question
The concept of 'never split the difference' can be applied in business negotiations by not settling for a compromise that might lead to suboptimal outcomes. Instead, one should focus on understanding the needs and wants of the other party through active listening and empathy. This approach can help in creating trust and safety for a real conversation, which can lead to a more favorable outcome for both parties.
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Never split the difference—it leads to dreadful outcomes. If you want to wear your black shoes, but your spouse wants you to wear the brown ones, splitting the difference means you end up wearing one black shoe and one brown. Compromising is a cop-out, a way to feel safe. Start any negotiation by listening; it's the only way to create enough trust and safety for a real conversation, to identify what your counterpart actually needs and to get them to feel safe enough to talk about what they really want. Practice good listening—it will help you develop emotional empathy. Researchers at Princeton University used an fMRI brain-scan to discover that people who paid the most attention, i.e., really good listeners, could actually anticipate what a speaker was about to say. In her daily TV show, Oprah was a master listener. She was able to get the person she was interviewing to talk about their deepest secrets, using a smile to ease the tension, signaling empathy with subtle verbal and no...
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