{"id":45299,"date":"2021-08-06T07:56:00","date_gmt":"2021-08-06T11:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=45299"},"modified":"2021-08-16T12:40:40","modified_gmt":"2021-08-16T16:40:40","slug":"never-split-the-difference-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/never-split-the-difference-book\/","title":{"rendered":"Never Split the Difference: Book Review (Chris Voss)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Is Never Split the Difference<\/em> worth reading? What is the main factor, according to its author Chris Voss, that drives decision-making<\/a> in a negotiation? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chris Voss’s 2016 book Never Split the Difference<\/em> (with co-writing assistance from Tahl Raz) was seen as an important contribution to the literature of negotiation theory and strategy. Voss’s main thesis is that good negotiation happens on the emotional <\/em>level of the brain, not the rational level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This Never Split the Difference<\/em> book <\/em>review takes a look at the book’s inspiration and background, intellectual context, and its key strengths and weaknesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In his book Never Split the Difference<\/em>, Chris Voss aims to provide a comprehensive guide to negotiating theory and strategy, giving you the tools you need to negotiate successfully\u2014whether you\u2019re trying to get a raise at your job, buy a car at the right price, re-sign your lease at a reasonable rent, or any of the other everyday situations where we have to use negotiation to get what we <\/em>want from somebody else<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Voss argues that human beings are inherently irrational and impulsive, willing to make decisions with incomplete information and disregard for their own basic material interests\u2014if the decision satisfies a deeper emotional need. Your job as a negotiator, Voss argues, is to practice and display empathy toward your counterpart by understanding her emotions, learning to see the situation from her point of view\u2014and, ultimately, getting her to feel comfortable enough with you to let her emotional guard down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the emotional core of negotiation is the key to getting what you want from your counterpart, according to Voss. By tapping into your counterpart\u2019s emotions\u2014what they most desire to gain, what they most fear losing\u2014you can get the decisive upper hand in any negotiation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Authors<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Chris Voss is a former FBI hostage negotiator, CEO and founder of The Black Swan Group<\/a> (a firm that specializes in negotiation training), and adjunct professor at the University of Southern California and Georgetown University. During more than two decades with the FBI, Voss was the lead negotiator on several high-profile kidnapping and terrorism cases, including the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the 1996 TWA Flight 800 explosion, and the 2006 Jill Carroll kidnapping case in Iraq. He has appeared on television to discuss his experiences and theory of negotiation, including on CNN Newsroom<\/em>, Fox and Friends<\/em>, and The War Room With Michael Shure<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tahl Raz is a business journalist who has worked as a collaborator for several leading non-fiction books on business, negotiation, networking, and management. Raz is an expert in editorial and digital content strategy who offers freelance consulting services for enterprises looking for engaging and action-oriented content. Besides Never Split the Difference<\/em>, his other collaborations include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n