{"id":23164,"date":"2021-01-17T09:27:38","date_gmt":"2021-01-17T13:27:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=23164"},"modified":"2021-01-17T14:13:21","modified_gmt":"2021-01-17T18:13:21","slug":"chris-voss-thats-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/chris-voss-thats-right\/","title":{"rendered":"The Chris Voss “That’s Right” Principle: What Is It?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is the Chris Voss \u201cthat’s right\u201d principle? What does it mean when someone says \u201cthat’s right\u201d in a negotiation? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Chris Voss, \u201cthat’s right\u201d signals an important milestone in a negotiation. It means that your negotiating counterpart has come to embrace what you have said, and it is their way of acknowledging you seeing things their way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read about the Chris Voss \u201cthat’s right\u201d principle from the former FBI hostage negotiator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Chris Voss: \u201cThat\u2019s Right\u201d<\/strong> Is Powerful in Negotiations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to Chris Voss, when someone says \u201cthat\u2019s right\u201d in a negotiation, it means that they now feel that they are dealing with someone who understands and respects their point of view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The person saying doesn\u2019t feel \u201cthat\u2019s right\u201d is a concession, either. In fact, it\u2019s empowering to be able to say \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d Your counterpart will feel that their opinion, their way of seeing things, has truly sunk in with you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For your counterpart, this is the best of both worlds: they get to agree with you (and forge a bond) without feeling like they\u2019ve caved (maintaining autonomy)<\/strong>. This satisfies their basic emotional needs for safety and autonomy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019ve also given you a valuable window into their true motivations and desires. You now have your counterpart\u2019s self-confirmed view of the situation. They\u2019ve stated their position unequivocally, which you can now use to commit them to your preferred course of action<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting to \u201cThat\u2019s Right\u201d<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

So how do you get your counterpart to say \u201cThat\u2019s right?\u201d Follow these steps below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Use the power of silence by letting them talk until all the emotion is drained from the conversation. Remember, people want to feel like they\u2019re being heard. <\/li>
  2. Offer minimal encouragement through intermittent interjections like \u201cYes,\u201d \u201cI see,\u201d or \u201cOk.\u201d This signals that you\u2019re engaged and paying attention<\/a> to what they\u2019re saying.<\/li>
  3. Mirror their statements to build empathy and rapport.<\/li>
  4. Label their emotions through simple phrases like, \u201cIt seems like you\u2019re distressed over being put in such an unfair position\u201d to demystify their fears, force them to work through them, and show that you get it.<\/li>
  5. Go a step further than labeling<\/a> by paraphrasing. Instead of parroting back what they\u2019re saying, put their story into your own <\/em>words to demonstrate that you really get it. <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Beware of \u201cYou\u2019re Right\u201d<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    As crucial as \u201cThat\u2019s right\u201d is, you need to watch out for the fool\u2019s gold of \u201cYou\u2019re<\/em> right.\u201d For your counterpart, \u201cYou\u2019re right\u201d is an admission of defeat<\/strong>, a capitulation. They don\u2019t get the feeling of autonomy that they get from thinking that they\u2019ve brought you around to their way of seeing things. Instead, they feel like they\u2019re meekly submitting to your authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This is not <\/em>where you want them to be. You want your counterpart to think that they\u2019ve arrived at your preferred conclusion themselves. \u201cYou\u2019re right\u201d does the opposite: it forces <\/em>them to see things your way<\/strong>. As a result, they\u2019re going to be much less committed to the conclusion that they\u2019ve reached, which can cause implementation problems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    What is the Chris Voss \u201cthat’s right\u201d principle? What does it mean when someone says \u201cthat’s right\u201d in a negotiation? According to Chris Voss, \u201cthat’s right\u201d signals an important milestone in a negotiation. It means that your negotiating counterpart has come to embrace what you have said, and it is their way of acknowledging you seeing things their way. Read about the Chris Voss \u201cthat’s right\u201d principle from the former FBI hostage negotiator.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":23349,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,9],"tags":[185],"class_list":["post-23164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication","category-psychology","tag-never-split-the-difference","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Chris Voss "That's Right" Principle: What Is It? - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"According to Chris Voss, \u201cthat's right\u201d is an important milestone in a negotiation. 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