"Plans Are Worthless"
Plans go out the window
How can you craft realistic strategy if the future is uncertain and core factors seem to be in flux? That’s a critical question not only for negotiators, but also military leaders, businesspeople, and even TV personalities (as you’ll soon see).
The title and subtitle above about plans and planning might seem to be opposing positions in a debate, yet the were spoken by one person, General Dwight Eisenhower, architect of the D-day invasion that paved the way to an Allied victory in World War II.
Eisenhower wasn’t contradicting himself. He recognized that plans can only be provisional, whether they are for combat, launching a new business, making a deal, or resolving a dispute. In both warfare and negotiation, the fog of uncertainty, and changing circumstances makes anticipating every possibility impossible.
There’s a saying in the military that “plans go out the window at first contact with the enemy.” The same is true in negotiation, too, whether we’re trying to settle a contentious lawsuit or forge a collaborative partnership. Therefore, we must learn and adapt, strategically and tactically, as the process unfolds.
Still, planning is essential
At the same time, however, Eisenhower was strongly committed to a well-conceived planning process to sharpen objectives, expose possible obstacles, and illuminate potential paths, even though the exact route may not be determined until the interaction is well under way. Again, that’s just as true for negotiation.
The core theme of this newsletter is that negotiation is a dynamic, often uncertain process over which we never have total control. It thus requires constant learning, adapting, and influencing from start to finish. Improvisation is a must. (Hence the title, Jazz of Negotiation.) As a bonus, skillful improvising can spawn creative solutions to deal-making and dispute resolution challenges that others might see as insurmountable.
But how can we become better improvisers? Is it simply a talent that some lucky people are born with and the rest of us just don’t have? Trying to be more spontaneous sounds like a contradiction in terms. How can we plan for the unexpected?
Talk show television is light-years away from bitter warfare, yet long time host Conan O’Brien has an answer that echoes General Eisenhower’s thinking. O’Brien says: “Prepare like crazy so you can wing it.” Negotiators should do exactly that, as well.
A Fast Company article, “Conan O’Brien’s Guide to Creativity,” describes the intense preparation that he and his writers go through before every show. They shout out questions that O’Brien could ask a guest, imagining how he or she might respond. The goal is finding what topic might make for the most entertaining banter. All the while in these sessions, the clock is ticking down to showtime.
O’Brien says that “as you get close and closer to the show, the pressure increases, and you start running out of time and that’s when more and more key decisions are made.” (That’s often the case in high-stakes negotiations, too.) His secret, though, is that “after doing all that brainstorming, let it go.“
O’Brien explains:
“Just as you’re heading out, half an hour beforehand, forget all of it. It’s there. It’s in your reptile brain. Go out but feel loose enough to grab opportunities as they come up. Don’t just stick to the plan if you see an opportunity.”
“Prepare like crazy” but then “forget it all”? That may seem odd at first. If you’re letting it all go, why prep so hard in the first place?
There are at least two good reasons. First, intense preparation will give you a measure of confidence. You’ve done what you can to be ready. You’ve anticipated different ways things might unfold and considered a variety of ways you could respond. Can you ever foresee everything and conjure up perfect responses for each eventuality? Of course not, but you’ve done what’s possible.
Second, accepting that reality enables you to keep your mind from racing. Instead, you can listen, observe, adding new information to the data sat you already built and seeing more clearly latent possibilities. In short, mimic O’Brien. Always be quick to go off-script and seize opportunities to be creative and close your deal.
Housekeeping
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Be well, Mike