Never Split the Difference: Master the Art of Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It

Fadi CHAMI: I loved going through this book and getting new valuable lessons, it has plenty of real examples to bring light and similarity to the concepts. The writing style is very easy and has practically summarized recaps of each chapter

United States on Oct 04, 2023

mariola skrzypiec: I loved your book ! So much so that I have tough my children to use these negotiation techniques to deal with situations at school such as bullying or difficult teachers. My 14 year old daughter got particularly great at the techniques. She had a bad day at her squash training (she plays for England) and one of her friend's parents (police negotiator) started to ask her questions to find out what was bothering her. After 2 questions she looked at him and said "don't chrissvoss me here". The negotiator was left speechless. 😂

United Kingdom on Sep 29, 2023

Matt: Thank you so much Chris!

Your book and content has changed my life.

I’m no longer socially anxious worried about looking or feeling like an idiot approaching people. I see it as a fun and exciting experience to both practice the skills you taught me and learn about the other person without having to try to think of how to respond.

You’ve taught me the practical application of empathy and connection. I’ve not tried it in a negotiation setting yet but now I feel far more comfortable about following the process and seeing how it unfolds. “Never be so sure about something you wouldn’t take something better”.

Again, thank you so much.

Australia on Sep 25, 2023

Kindle-Kunde: The author knows what he is talking about in negotiation and shares it with vivid and helpful examples. Here are very useful summary sections. I have no doubt there is at least one deep insight that will help me later in life. Great book! I will read it again.

Germany on Sep 17, 2023

Max: This is the most tactical, actionable book I have read about how to navigate people, their thoughts, and their feelings that I have ever read. I recommend reading Getting to Yes first before digging into this one. Buy a copy, don't rent one from the library. You will want to refer back to it.

Reading this book has helped:
- My career (in so many ways)
- My relationship with my wife
- Reconnecting with old friends
- Understanding myself

United States on Sep 13, 2023

Michael: The book uses real examples of negotiations to teach how understanding human behavior is the key to performing a successful negotiation. The book goes way beyond the step-by-step process of how a negotiation plays out. Voss uses his years of experience when applied to the highest stakes negotiation and demonstrates how those same techniques can be used in everyday life, regardless of whether you are negotiating for something.
This book is well worth the read, and each chapter breaks down the complexities involved with understanding the person on the other side of a negotiation.

United States on Sep 11, 2023

H. SebastianH. Sebastian: Reading the ten chapters over about 250 pages felt like seconds... the book simply blew me away. Chris Voss, Chief Hostage Negotiator in New York but also in other hot spots around the globe has his share to tell about negotiating, especially in life or death situations. Every chapter covers a story from his rich professional experience, which the leads to the central topics of the chapter (like mirroring, labeling, altering reality...) which is then described in detail. And of course, the author explains, why you should never split the difference, not only during life and death hostage negotiations.
Some things like mirroring were known to me, but other things like labeling and their importance within important (business) discussions just blew me away. All the know-how presented is delivered based on real time, hard won experience and gave me an immediate feeling, that the author exactly knows what he is talking about.
Definitely a book I will often take out of my bookshelf to re-read, the know-how presented there will take time and especially practice to apply, but it will be worthwhile to do so. I liked the presentation style, the length of each chapter, the language (I...

Germany on Aug 04, 2023

Anthony: This is a book for life. It can be applicable for your daily life and especially applicable when it comes to communication between people whether it be business or social interactions. Cannot recommend it enough!

Japan on Jul 27, 2023

edsetiadi: This is a phenomenal book, written by an author who spent the majority of his 24 years career as the lead international kidnapping negotiator for the FBI and its hostage negotiation representative for the National Security Council’s Hostage Working Group. Apart from trained by the bureau, he was also trained in Scotland Yard and Harvard Law School.

But first and foremost, his negotiation techniques come directly from the tried and tested field, from his experience in the deep jungle of Ecuador, to the separatist area of the Philippines, the slumps of Tahiti, to the many occurrences from within the US including bank robberies, a prison coup, and that bomb threat incident that got Washington DC into a lockdown for 48 hours. Indeed, reading this book feels like watching a very intense action movie, with all the detailed, chaotic, and super-tense scenes.

The many real-life lessons in the book also come from business world, board meeting battles, investment negotiations, and the various cases that his students faced, from high stake deals to as menial as asking a salary raise.

Constructed the book using these real-life events, the author, Chris Voss, guides us...

United States on Sep 23, 2021

Ian Mann: Let’s get this clear: You don’t get the life you deserve, you get the life you negotiate.
That said, who better to guide you in the best techniques for negotiation than someone who was involved in genuinely high-stakes negotiating – world-class ex-FBI hostage negotiator, Chris Voss. Having seen too many B-Grade movies, your perception of dealing with hostage-takers, as was mine, may be assembling an armour-clad SWAT team, getting a clear head shot at the hostage taker, and rescuing the terrified victims.
After seeing too many incidents end in disaster for the victims, the FBI turned to using very sophisticated negotiation techniques. Most business negotiators are raised on the “Getting to Yes” approach of Fisher and Ury. One of their keys to negotiating is the assumption that the other side is going to “act rationally and selfishly in trying to maximize their position.” Your task is to get as much as you can. The only people who come close to doing this are those negotiating with other people’s money and who will make an outsized commission irrespective of the outcome.
The book’s title, ‘Never Split the Difference’, highlights the deficiencies in...

United States on May 03, 2017