The Negotiation Skill NOBODY Teaches YOU: How to Fail Well

Negotiate Anything

American Negotiation Institute

Business, Education, Self-improvement

4.7 • 748 Ratings

🗓️ 11 February 2026

⏱️ 46 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Failure isn’t the end of a negotiation — it’s the beginning of your biggest breakthrough. In this thought-provoking episode of Negotiate Anything, Kwame Christian sits down with renowned negotiation expert Joshua Weiss to tackle one of the most uncomfortable — and misunderstood — topics in negotiation: failure. Why do smart, capable negotiators struggle so deeply after setbacks? And more importantly, how can failure become a strategic advantage instead of a source of shame? Joshua introduces the powerful ideas behind his book Getting Back to the Table, breaking down why most people learn the wrong lessons from failed negotiations — and how that mistake quietly sabotages future outcomes. Together, they explore the psychology of failure, the role of ego and identity, and the critical difference between blaming yourself, blaming others, and facing the cold, hard facts with clarity and resilience. This episode goes far beyond tactics. It’s a deep dive into mindset, self-awareness, and personal growth — revealing how negotiators, leaders, parents, and professionals can reframe failure as a tool for learning, confidence, and long-term success. If you’ve ever walked away from a conversation replaying what went wrong, this conversation will change how you see failure forever. Negotiate Anything: Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code ANYTHING at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: ⁠https://incogni.com/anything⁠ incogni.com ⁠Personal Information Removal Service | Incogni | Incogni⁠ Data brokers are collecting, aggregating and trading your personal data without you knowing anything about it. We make them remove it.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Today's episode of Negotiate Anything is sponsored in part by Shopify, Bravo, Cozy Earth, and Incogni.
0:07.0	Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you start, run, and grow your business.
0:12.8	Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at Shopify.com slash Kwame.
0:17.8	Brevo is an all-in-one marketing and CRM platform to help you connect with customers and grow smarter.
0:24.6	Get started for free or use Code Anything 50 to save 50% on starter and standard plans for the first three months of your annual subscription at brevo.com slash anything.
0:36.6	Cozy Earth makes everyday comfort feel like a real upgrade
0:40.2	from unbelievably soft sleepwear to plush blankets. Go to cozyEarth.com and use the code Kwame for up to
0:46.9	20% off and you'll get a post-purch survey. Make sure you mention you heard about it here.
0:52.8	Incogni helps you to take your personal
0:55.1	data back by removing it from places online where it shouldn't be, helping to reduce your
1:00.4	exposure to scams and identity theft. Use code anything for 60% off of an annual plan at
1:07.3	incogni.com slash anything. As always, you can find all of these deals in the show notes.
1:13.4	When I look back at that, like, I reacted really negatively to that because I was like,
1:18.5	you could have just told me this as opposed to making me feel like I'm a complete idiot and
1:25.5	no one ever does this, right?
1:27.7	Like, sorry, actually, lots of people do this.
1:30.1	Like, lots of people make this mistake.
1:31.7	And I think it's when we add in this sort of, how does this reflect on your reputation
1:37.1	and who you are as opposed to what's, like, if we just describe what happened like you did
1:43.5	with Kai, right, and say, you know,
1:46.0	that's probably not the best way to handle it.
1:47.5	Okay, dad, that makes sense.
	...

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