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All Things Negotiation: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Stan Christensen
A podcast about negotiation, persuasion, and influence—taught through real stories. Hosted by Stan Christensen, who has taught negotiation at Stanford University for over 20 years, this bi-weekly podcast features founders, executives, investors, and foreign policy experts sharing real-world negotiation experiences. Episodes explore how leaders negotiate with venture capitalists, employees, customers, boards, and governments—and what actually works when the stakes are high.
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- 1 weeks ago1h 11m
Roger Carstens: America’s Chief Hostage Negotiator
Stan talks with Roger Carstens, former U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs and ex–Army Ranger/Special Forces officer, about high-stakes hostage negotiations and the realities of persuading adversaries. Carstens explains how the hostage office was created after U.S. failures in Syria, argues engagement is essential despite “we don’t negotiate” rhetoric, and reports his team helped bring home 65 Americans and over 250 non-Americans. He details preparation methods, identifying true decision-makers, and the often tougher “interagency combat” inside Washington. Case discussions include Russia prisoner swaps involving Viktor Bout, expanding negotiations into a multi-country deal, efforts to include Alexei Navalny, and the importance of allies. He describes President Biden’s deep involvement with Gaza hostage families, contrasts Iranian tactics with other states, and emphasizes trust, empathy, transparency, intuition, and creativity.01:55 Military Roots of Negotiation02:57 Special Forces Mindset05:22 Hostage Envoy Office Origins07:21 Why You Must Engage09:38 Inside a Russia Swap Prep10:50 Finding the Real Decision Makers14:50 Interagency Friction and Resilience17:00 Families as Creative Partners19:53 What Makes a Fair Trade24:05 Hardest Negotiation Is Internal25:27 Victor Bout After Release26:28 Enlarging the Swap With Allies28:35 Navalny on the Table33:18 Allies and Trust at the Top34:10 Biden and Gaza Hostage Families36:47 Tragedy on the Call38:45 White House Takes Lead40:26 Relationships First41:42 Iranian Negotiation Games44:02 Winning Over the Taliban47:45 Maduro and Venezuela Lessons53:07 Intuition and Judgment58:28 China and Building Rapport01:01:39 Surging Trust Fast01:06:33 Lightning Round and ClosingHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- 4 weeks ago55 min
Christa Gannon: Negotiating With Kids the System Gave Up On
Stan interviews Christa Gannon about founding Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY) after volunteering with incarcerated teens and asking what could have prevented their involvement with the justice system. A former UC Santa Barbara basketball All-American and Stanford Law graduate, Gannon describes negotiating with fear to take a nontraditional path, learning entrepreneurial lessons from sports, and using deep listening to co-design programs with youth around legal education, mentoring, and leadership development. She discusses the demographics and trauma many justice-involved youth face, the use of role plays to teach life skills and conflict resolution, and the importance of authenticity, consistency, and humility in earning trust. The conversation covers persuading system stakeholders and donors with shared goals, outcomes, and youth-centered storytelling, plus FLY’s results in reducing recidivism and building hope, and Gannon’s later transition from CEO and her work supporting leadership transitions.Check out FLY: https://flyprogram.org00:00 Vision Beyond Prison00:22 Choosing a Different Path02:29 Claiming the Torch04:23 Athlete Mindset for Leadership05:52 Juvenile Hall Catalyst07:31 Founding FLY Mission09:00 Credibility and Permission10:49 Who the Youth Are13:23 Deep Listening Co Creation15:36 Teaching Through Role Plays18:21 Persuading Systems and Stakeholders20:06 Authenticity Builds Buy In23:02 Trust Story Football Mentor25:34 Role Plays in Real Life26:28 Mentor Program Lesson27:51 Volunteer Consistency Matters29:19 Parents Gangs Ripple Effects31:56 Replacing Gang Belonging32:34 Justice System Stakeholders34:43 Donors Stories Ethics39:10 Measuring Youth Outcomes40:32 Teaching Conflict Skills41:44 Meeting Kids Where They Are44:34 Work Family Balance48:29 Founder Transition Bridge50:28 Transition Advice ClosingHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- May 27, 202655 min
How to Have Difficult Conversations with Sheila Heen
Stan interviews longtime friend and Harvard professor Sheila Heen about why difficult conversations derail and how to handle them more effectively.They discuss the “hero/villain/victim” stories people tell when frustrated, how smart people can listen poorly by focusing on what’s wrong, and why many conflicts are “switch-track” disagreements where each person thinks the conversation is about something different. The conversation also covers political polarization, complex identities, and Heen’s course on negotiating money, wealth, happiness, and meaning.00:00 Intro03:06 What Makes Talks Hard04:30 Avoidance And Timing06:53 Family Conversation Traps08:54 Hero Villain Victim10:06 Respond To Feelings12:40 Switch Track Conversations14:25 Empathy Versus Assertion18:04 Loss19:43 Intent Versus Impact20:33 Comment Dilemma23:15 Intent/Impact Lesson27:34 Beyond Blame To Contribution29:50 Identity Fuels Polarization33:00 Antidotes To Political Divide34:50 Marriage Conflicts That Persist38:41 Negotiating Money And Self Worth42:36 Money Talks For Couples49:01 Lifestyle Creep And Meaning51:57 Lightning Round Conversation Tools54:58 Resources And FarewellCheck out Sheila at: https://www.stoneandheen.com/training-consultingBuy Her Book: https://www.stoneandheen.com/Host Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- May 12, 202651 min
Negotiating the New Cold War with China
China expert Rush Doshi explains how the US should negotiate and compete with China amid deep mutual distrust and differing views of intentions. Rush Doshi is regarded as one of the leading voices on US policy toward China, and he argues that China’s strategy shifts with its perception of American power—ebbing and flowing with the state of US policy decisions.Stan and Rush discuss his insight from being in a key figure in the rooms of prior negotiations and how that shapes his view of the current state of US policies: what works and what doesn't.Rush points out the key weakness the US has when squaring up to China on the international stage, but he also shares what the US can do to win the competition.Check out Rush's book: https://www.rushdoshi.com/thelonggame01:41 China Reads US Power03:00 From Biding Time To Boldness04:16 Why Beijing Feels Confident05:11 Managing Distrustful Talks08:14 Biden Era Negotiation Phases10:06 Trade War And Rare Earth Shock13:58 Strategic Versus Tactical Bargaining16:30 Scale Decides Great Powers21:53 Allied Scale As The Answer24:08 Using Leverage With Allies25:24 Tariffs After Court Ruling25:51 Allied Scale For Minerals27:33 Sticks Versus Strategy28:03 Domestic Politics And Blowback30:45 Distraction And Strategic Opportunity32:13 Taiwan Policy In Flux34:22 Chips Deals And Credibility37:27 Strategic Ambiguity And Stability41:07 Managed Competition Framework46:08 Russia Ukraine And China48:12 Making The Case At Home50:27 Congress And Closing ThoughtsHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- Apr 21, 202650 min
Sal Khan on AI, Education, and the Future of Work
Sal Khan reflects on growing Khan Academy from tutoring cousins in 2004 into a nonprofit serving nearly 200 million registered users across 50+ languages with 350 staff, driven by a mission of free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere. Sal shares how he negotiated with himself and his collaborators to keep Khan Academy a non-profit organization that's mission-driven. He dives into the most prominent issues facing education today including systemic problems inherited from the incumbents in the space, as well as new challenges and opportunities being ushered in with the rise of AI technology. Check out schoolhouse.world. http://schoolhouse.world/Please consider donating to Khan Academyhttp://khanacademy.org/donate 00:00 Khan Academy Scale00:27 Why It Became An Institution02:05 Origin Story Tutoring Cousins04:15 Money Versus Mission06:51 Why Stay Nonprofit09:52 Working With School Systems12:52 Winning Teacher Trust15:58 District Negotiations And Privacy19:09 OpenAI Outreach And GPT-4 Demo22:10 Building Conmigo AI Tutor23:39 Beyond Tutoring Writing And Cheating24:03 AI Writing Coach Workflow24:50 Assessing Soft Skills26:27 Next Gen Standardized Tests26:56 Scaling Durable Skills Training28:20 Why He Wrote Brave New Words32:50 Rethinking What Schools Teach33:26 Who Sets Curriculum Signals37:13 Job Shock and Automation Fears39:28 Who Pays for Reskilling43:20 Screen Time and Healthy Tech45:18 Can Khan Reduce Inequality47:28 Global Impact Stories Wrap UpHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- Apr 1, 202635 min
Robert O'brien: An Insider's View on How Trump Actually Negotiates
Former Trump Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs and National Security Advisor Robert C. O’Brien discusses behind-the-scenes negotiation lessons from hostage cases and major foreign-policy deals. O’Brien describes his approach as implementing President Trump’s decisions, crediting that alignment for successes including the Abraham Accords. He gives a candid look at what operations inside the Trump administration looks like. Robert and Stan weigh the merits and perils of Trump's personal negotiating style and the effects it might have on the U.S standing in the world.00:00 Trump Negotiation Style00:26 Meet Robert OBrien01:39 ASAP Rocky Case03:30 Tough Talk With Sweden05:27 From Hostages To NSA07:27 Abraham Accords Breakthrough10:59 Kushner And Internal Pushback12:07 West Bank Red Line14:25 Maximalism And Greenland17:35 Unpredictability And Kissinger19:48 Taiwan And China Strategy21:55 Allies And Burden Sharing24:38 Soleimani And Syria Deal27:51 Erdogan And Long Term Ties31:17 Negotiation Skills And UnityHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- Mar 12, 202646 min
Fareed Zakaria: Navigating a World of Rising Powers and Shifting Alliances
In this conversation with Fareed Zakaria, the discussion centers on negotiation as the core of foreign policy and the danger of confusing tactical success with strategic clarity. Zakaria weighs in on the U.S conflict in Iran and shares a dire warning about how it could affect U.S negotiations for years to come. Stan and Fareed discuss a wide range of bilateral relationships and the potential risk of an “imperial trap” we might be falling into as we erode trust and the post-1945 order.Check out Fareed on his podcast:https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/fareed-zakaria-gpsAnd CNN: https://podcasts.apple.com/iq/podcast/fareed-zakaria-gps/id37778509000:00 Tactics vs Strategy01:33 Iran Talks Undermined03:46 Israel US Goals Diverge06:00 Iraq Lessons and Aims08:20 Pressuring Israel12:25 China Reads the Signals15:11 Tariffs and Trust18:01 Allies and Supply Chains21:55 India and Turkey23:11 Turkey Drifts Westward23:59 Pressuring Putin to Talk25:43 Both Sides and Overreach28:50 Norms Versus Guardrails32:00 Why Congress Stays Silent35:35 Can GOP Reclaim Reagan38:03 Democrats and Culture Wars42:10 Great Negotiators and WrapHost Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.
- Feb 24, 202645 min
Jenna Nicholas: Negotiating For Purpose And Profit
In this podcast episode, Stan welcomes investor and CEO Jenna Nicholas to discuss the growing inflection point where financial performance aligns with social and environmental impact. They explore Nicholas’s book, "The Enlightened Bottom Line: Exploring the Intersection of Spirituality, Business and Investing," including her motivation to interview investors and business leaders about transformational moments, values, and legacy. Nicholas shares case studies such as Patagonia’s Holdfast Collective structure to perpetuate environmental impact, Panera’s COVID-era partnership to provide school lunches through USDA support, and companies like Devoted Health and Barry-Wehmiller that connect trust and empathy to business performance. Check out Jenna's book at: https://www.jenna-nicholas.com/00:00 Impact Investing Inflection00:57 Negotiation Lessons Revisited01:48 Why Write The Book04:26 Patagonia And Panera Stories07:33 HEAL Framework Explained08:15 ESG Goes Mainstream14:46 Convincing The Skeptics17:00 Trust Purpose And Performance19:39 Spirituality At Work23:13 Embedding Values In Culture25:21 What Is Impact Experience33:40 Measuring Outcomes And Commitments35:50 Education Equity Breakthroughs41:47 Deep Listening As Persuasion44:36 Closing Thoughts And Book Plug
About All Things Negotiation
A podcast about negotiation, persuasion, and influence—taught through real stories. Hosted by Stan Christensen, who has taught negotiation at Stanford University for over 20 years, this bi-weekly podcast features founders, executives, investors, and foreign policy experts sharing real-world negotiation experiences. Episodes explore how leaders negotiate with venture capitalists, employees, customers, boards, and governments—and what actually works when the stakes are high.
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