From the course: Nano Tips for Effortless Influence with Shadé Zahrai

Reframing requests that might be met with resistance

From the course: Nano Tips for Effortless Influence with Shadé Zahrai

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Reframing requests that might be met with resistance

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- Legendary FBI negotiator Chris Voss has revealed a ridiculously easy influence technique when making requests that might be met with resistance. When Chris attended a book signing by the former GE CEO Jack Welch, his goal was to invite him to speak at an MBA class that he taught. Instead of making a straightforward request that may have been rejected, Chris framed his question as, "Would it be a ridiculous idea for you to come and speak at the negotiation course I teach at USC?" After a moment of silence, Jack handed Chris his assistant's business card. This is the effectiveness of the Would it be Unreasonable Technique. By reframing the question to make the request seem not unreasonable, you increase the likelihood of a positive response. "Would it be unreasonable for us to submit feedback by the end of the day, while it's still fresh in our memory?" "Yeah, it's a good idea, sure." "Would it be unreasonable if we considered allocating some of the budget to develop an AI-based chatbot to take some pressure off customer service?" "Yeah, let's look into that." Remember, make your request appear not unreasonable to influence buy-in.

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