Black Belt Negotiating: Become a Master Negotiator Using Powerful Lessons from the Martial Arts

Blocking

Although this may seem counterintuitive, blocking is actually one of the most powerful moves in martial arts because if you learn to block effectively, you cannot be hit. Throughout a confrontation, your opponent is expending his or her energy, yet you are using little of yours. It is said that if you learn to block expertly, you would never have to learn to punch or kick; the fight would end when your opponent realized it was futile to try to hit you or when he or she simply wore out.

In negotiating, blocking means learning to anticipate your opponent’s moves before he or she can make them, and you prepare a countermove to offset them. You have to think about all the proposals or objections that could be offered and how you might respond ...