What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Chris Voss: FBI’s Former Hostage Negotiation Prodigy
How do you gain trust & influence someone? Just “shut up and listen”. Not “listen for points we can argue against,” but put aside our agenda and listen with an open mind says Chris Voss, FBI’s former Hostage Negotiation Prodigy.
Everything in life is a negotiation. Whether you’re a student, parent, Entrepreneur, or a small business owner, negotiation is one skill that can drive sales to your business.
Starting from vendors to customers; you need to learn how to negotiate effectively on day to day basis.
And where else can you learn from other than Chris Voss?
A former lead kidnapping negotiator for the FBI, founder, and CEO of The Black Swan Group and author of Never Split the Difference.
“If while you’re making your argument, the only time the other side is silent is because they’re thinking about their own argument, they’ve got a voice in their head that’s talking to them. They’re not listening to you. When they’re making their argument to you, you’re thinking about your argument, that’s the voice in your head that’s talking to you. So, it’s very much like dealing with a schizophrenic.”
For negotiation, it is a life and death situation. Same goes for startups. As an Entrepreneur, you need to deal with negotiation every day.
Without communicating, without listening you cannot get your message across.
Be A Mirror
Your goal is to make your customer/vendor feel safe. The main objective is to make them feel safe enough so they can talk about their need freely.
Most Entrepreneurs start a conversation when their minds are pre-occupied. You need to start by clearing out some clutter of your mind so that you can make space to take in what needs to be heard.
Every customer has its need. Smart Entrepreneurs figure out the need of the customer and try to fulfill that need.
How To Use “Mirroring” To Build Rapport
Beware “Yes”, Master “No”
Yes, means meaningless agreement. While “No” provides an opportunity for both the parties to clarify what each of one wants out of the argument.
No is not just a rejection. It shows that the other party is uncomfortable with your point and gives you the opportunity to make the necessary changes to make it work.
After you get a “No” you can ask solution-based questions to provoke the customer so they can exactly tell what are they looking for
Saying “no” gives the speaker the feeling of safety, security, and control. It is a sign that the other party is engaged and thinking.
Chirs Voss mentions that “job of a good negotiator isn’t to put on a great performance, but to gently guide their counterpart to discover their goal as his own.”
Michael P Adams Sawaram Suthar Endertech David Smooke Joshua Hehe Oak Lomonosovas SF Ali Poornima Vijayashanker Chris Voss Yousuf Rafi
