Christopher Voss Quotes

I think a great negotiator is an aggressive negotiator, and we're aggressive negotiators, We're not worried about someone coming at us.

If your first objective in the negotiation, instead of making your argument, is to hear the other side out, that's the only way you can quiet the voice in the other guy's mind. But most people don't do that.

We don't point a pistol at our own forehead. That is not the way to conduct negotiations.

Negotiations are a euphemism for capitulation if the shadow of power is not cast across the bargaining table.

The first principle of contract negotiations is don't remind them of what you did in the past - tell them what you're going to do in the future.

You can't go to a negotiating table pointing a gun, but you've got to keep it over your shoulder.

In any negotiation, my goal is to be the most unreasonable person in the room.

Oftentimes, the best negotiations result in a deal that benefits both parties. There are times when you simply want to go for the jugular, but often, you want the other person to feel pleased with the outcome, even if you are the clear victor.

I got really good at negotiating from a place of weakness.

The secret to gaining the upper hand in a negotiation is to give the other side the illusion of control. Don't try to force your opponent to admit that you are right. Ask questions, that begin with 'How?' or 'What?' so your opponent uses mental energy to figure out the answer.

My goal is to be the tough negotiator but... not to air differences through press releases.

When you expect to get into a negotiation, you expect to be faced by a guy that's going to attack you, a guy or gal that's going to attack or that they're going to try to get the best of you. Two-thirds of us, that makes us very defensive.

You don't get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.

The way you have bipartisan negotiations, you sit down across the table, as we did with Ted Kennedy, as I've done with many other members, and you say, 'OK, here's what I want, here's what you want. We'll adhere to your principles, but we'll make concessions.'

All my other relationships with men, there was so much maneuvering and strategic decisions and stuff.

I think each negotiation should be based on what's the best decision - taking everything into account, not taking one thing into account.

What is negotiation but the accumulation of small lies leading to advantage?

Negotiation is not a policy. It's a technique. It's something you use when it's to your advantage, and something that you don't use when it's not to your advantage.

Soft words and hard arguments.

Unless you’re prepared to use force, it’s very difficult to deal with a person who understands only force.

You cannot just dictate at negotiations. You must also listen.

Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable, the art of the next best.

You can never in negotiations be totally predictable. The minute you’re predictable, they’re going to figure out how to take advantage.

Politicians are elected to reach compromise. We compromise all the time in our daily lives. Is there something dirty about that?

If you have to compromise, be sure to compromise up.