While the class covers 18 video lessons, a few specific techniques stand out as game-changers for daily life.
Situation: Asking for a lower price on a used car listed at $20k.
Voss is famous for his disdain for the word "Why." Asking "Why did you do that?" puts people on the defensive. Instead, he teaches the use of Calibrated Questions—open-ended questions starting with "How" or "What."
The crown jewel of these questions is:
"How am I supposed to do that?"
When you ask someone "How am I supposed to do that?" regarding an unreasonable demand, you are forcing them to look at the problem from your perspective. You are asking for their help. It turns a confrontation into a collaboration.
Ask open-ended “how” or “what” questions – never “why” (sounds accusatory). MasterClass - Chris Voss - The Art of Negotiati...
“How am I supposed to accept that price?”
“What about this doesn’t work for you?”
Why: Shifts burden of problem-solving to them.
Voss dedicates an entire lesson to the two most powerful words in negotiation: That’s right.
He distinguishes between "You're right" (a dismissal to get rid of you) and "That’s right" (an epiphany). While the class covers 18 video lessons, a
"Getting to that’s right" means you have summarized their worldview so accurately that they feel fully understood. When they hear your summary and say, "That’s right," they have psychologically bought into the solution. It is no longer your idea; it is theirs.
If you leave the MasterClass with only one skill, it should be this: learn to paraphrase their argument better than they can state it themselves.
Voss argues that rational, logic-based negotiation fails because people are emotional and irrational. Voss is famous for his disdain for the word "Why