Ego is the #1 problem. Always.Ever.

And it's the reason most negotiators never change. 😑

Some will hate this, but here’s what I keep seeing:

We talk about 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫, 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐍𝐀, 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞, 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲…

But the real threat is much quieter:

𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲.

In supplier meetings, it shows up instantly:

– We defend a bad position because changing it would make us look inconsistent.

– We ignore new data because it didn’t come from us.

– We reject concessions because we didn’t think of them first.

– We escalate conflict because backing down feels like losing face.

🔬 The science of negotiation is clear:

Cognitive biases trap us in the stories we tell ourselves — not the facts on the table.

Once ego kicks in, curiosity dies.

And when curiosity dies, negotiation dies.

The best negotiators I’ve coached aren’t the ones with the most tactics.

They’re the ones with the most 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀.

It’s uncomfortable.

It’s humbling.

It’s also where transformation starts.

𝗦𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗲: 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 — 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘆𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀: 𝗲𝗴𝗼 𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀?