Don't ask for yes

People like hearing yes, they don’t like saying it.

Chris Voss, a world class negotiator, shared this pearl in the Nudge podcast with Phill Agnew.

His point is we shouldn’t push for ‘yes’ because it makes people defensive.

Instead we should aim for ‘no’.

Rather than “Can we do this tomorrow?”, ask “Would you be against doing this tomorrow?”

Rather than “Is this a good time to talk?”, ask “Is now a bad time to talk?”

No gives them agency. They remain in charge and are less defensive as a result.

So, would you be against sharing this with someone who would find it interesting? 👀