Check Call: Business deals through the eyes of a hostage negotiator

It’s the end of the month and time for another book review. This month’s book is “Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It” by Chris Voss. Originally published in 2016, it’s been a longtime classic of the sales and business world. It seemed like a strong contender for a 5-star book. Unfortunately, for me it’s a solid 3.5 stars.

The premise of the book is simple enough: Voss dives into the world of negotiation, using real-life examples from his time as an FBI hostage negotiator. The book delivers engaging real-world stories and actionable techniques, such as tactical empathy and mirroring.

Each chapter covers a different technique. It starts with a scenario from Voss’ time as an FBI negotiator then looks at a business situation and finally a personal life story, all three of which use the same tactics to arrive at an ideal outcome. It’s a great way to explain some of the more nuanced aspects of communication and working to get what you want out of a deal or conversation.

The book leans heavily on dramatic hostage negotiation examples, which, while fascinating, don’t always translate seamlessly to everyday business or personal negotiations. Some concepts, like the “accusation audit,” feel valuable for certain situations but not universally effective. 

The main takeaways from the book are: 

• Mirror them – Repeat the clients’ question back in a curious tone: “How did I land on that price?” This gets them talking and buys you time.
• Use a calibrated question – Instead of justifying, redirect: “It seems like that number surprises you. What do you see as a fair price?” Now they have to explain themselves.
• Label their emotions – If they seem annoyed, acknowledge it: “It sounds like you think my offer is way off.” This defuses tension and encourages them to open up.
• Drop the “fair” bomb – “I want to make sure this feels fair to both of us. What makes that number feel unfair to you?” People love to think they’re being fair, and this makes them justify their price.
• Go full Chris Voss – If they demand way more, hit them with: “How am I supposed to do that?” This forces them to negotiate against themselves.

The biggest miss for me with this book is that it felt very repetitive. Multiple times within each chapter, there were constant repetitions from previous chapters. I know that the skills build upon themselves, but it was overly repetitive in a way that suggested the author expected me to forget a concept I had read 20 pages ago and so he felt the need to reiterate it. 

If sales is your game, then you’ll probably get more out of it as there are some valid techniques that could greatly improve chances of closing a deal. The book is still engaging but it may not be the definitive negotiation guide for everyone. It would be immensely better if it were just hostage negotiation stories but that would be a whole other type of book. 

I’d say toss it on the “to be read” list but don’t move it to the top or rush to read it. For the book being nearly 9 years old, there is a lot that is still relevant. As of now, it’s available on Kindle Unlimited if that helps sell you on it.

Got a recommendation on what to read next? I’m open to suggestions. 

TRAC Tuesday. This week’s lane goes from Southern California to the midwest in Des Moines, Iowa. This isn’t the most common way to move freight to the Midwest, but moving freight halfway across the country is hardly unusual. The rate per mile on this lane is only $1.88 which is almost half the national average of $2.45.

Freight heading into Iowa might be a bit cheaper as carriers could be looking to head to the state to capitalize on the high outbound tender rejection rates. The OTRI for Des Moines is 17.83%, which coincidentally matches the state’s average. For comparison, the national average is 5.61%, a third of what is for the state. Spot rates coming out of Iowa expect to be inflationary coupled with low contract carrier compliance.

Who’s with whom. The Amazon effect is spreading its wings, this time with its sights set on the less-than-truckload market. Rumor has it that the small mom-and-pop e-commerce company is planning on jumping into the LTL space. It has been posting job opportunities for LTL product managers and network design. While these roles are set to fall under the Amazon Freight arm of the company, it’s a pretty good sign the company has found its next avenue of expansion. 

FreightWaves’ Michael Rudolph wrote in his article: “J.P. Morgan analyst Brian Ossenbeck warned in a research note that Amazon’s entry as a for-hire competitor poses a substantial risk to LTL stocks. ‘The most obvious risk for LTL stocks is if this service launches for external users at some point in 2026 as it is pretty much impossible to put that disruptive idea back in the box,’ Ossenbeck notes.”

After 2024 Q4 earnings reports a few weeks ago, it seems the LTL industry as a whole is missing the mark – low revenue, falling volumes and tonnage, and a host of other things that left stockholders more than a little miffed.

Entering a struggling industry is a bold choice, but it takes time to build out an LTL network, so here’s hoping that the market recovers before Amazon’s LTL gets a foot in the door to shake up the competition.

The more you know

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Borderlands Mexico: Organized crime groups fuel rise of US cargo thefts

Tariff fears help Port of Long Beach containers to best start on record 

Resilient rejection rates illustrate truckload capacity’s decline

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