Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation

When the Optimal Answer Is Wrong

I know. I know. It’s been a minute.Any of you who follow me understand I’ve been busy with multiple other projects, and that these projects (just as in my everyday life) always involve negotiation. I live and breathe the stuff. I have more posts on the topic, but I can assure you of something since I last showed up here: Humans negotiate better than AI. I always include negotiation scenes in my fiction writing, including the internationally acclaimed dual timeline San Francisco family saga, The Covert Buccaneer, and its sequel (coming 2027), Bitter & Sweet: The Houses of Torani & Trieste. So here’s one of those scenes—the opening negotiation from The Covert Buccaneer. Following the scene, we’ll break it down using the tell-all negotiation theory and strategy I’ve shared here. This is a clean, high-functioning negotiation scene because the tension isn’t just distributive (“how much?”) — it’s structural, temporal, and moral. I’ve embedded multiple negotiation dynamics simultaneously, which makes it more than just didactic.Ready?The SceneJanuary 10, 2019. San Francisco, CA.A quarter past three, and the fog swaggered in, taunted into a rematch by the Golden Gate’s bratty undertow. Although born and raised just outside Chicago, where she had stoically braved real winters, the wet, windy San Francisco fog chilled Ellie down to the bone.Ellie pulled a pashmina around her shoulders and slid past her clunky desk to shut the drafty window. Turning back, she studied her client, Fernanda Salinas. They had just spent the past two hours in deposition in a conference room down the hall, facing down the attorney for Assurance Underwriters of California. Fernanda, a refugee from western Mexico, had been fired from her hotel housekeeping job after catching her hand in a fire door, which had been pushed open by a frazzled banquet manager.Instead of filing a workers’ compensation report and covering the hospital bill for X-rays, surgery, and physical therapy, the hotel management had sent Fernanda her pink slip, firing her from the job and cutting off her meager income. The result was the eviction of Fernanda and her three children from their small, cockroach-infested apartment, as she’d struggled to pay her medical bills. No rent, no mercy.When she had come to Elizabeth House, a women’s shelter in Oakland, for help, they had a waitlist for housing women with children, but an outreach worker had put Fernanda in touch with the San Francisco Immigrant Legal Defense Collaborative, where Ellie had started working just two months ago. The offices at 4 Embarcadero Center were a departure from the sleek marbled suites at Hutton & Fetterer, where she’d previously worked; here, the surfaces were firmly chipboard, but she had been buoyed by the work and felt a sense of worth. Now, she saw Fernanda’s face, eyes shining, tears trickling down her cheeks.Moments earlier, the attorney for Assurance had paused the testimony and pulled Ellie aside with an offer. A settlement — today, if her client would sign now. Ellie had known exactly what that meant. They saw the same thing she did in the medical records. The damaged finger wasn’t healing well, and there was a real risk of amputation. They wanted to cut their losses and close the case before that certainty.The case was worth much more. But she also knew Fernanda’s situation — no home, no income, no time left to wait.“How long?” asked Fernanda. “How long for the money?”“Oh,” said Ellie. “Well, there’ll be a bit of paperwork, but it’ll come through in a couple of weeks. They tend to want to tie these things up and close them off.”Fernanda nodded.“Yes, yes, I’ll sign; can I sign now?” Fernanda clasped her hands on the table, supporting her still-recovering right hand with her left.Ellie’s stomach tightened. Fifteen grand was a fortune to Fernanda — but waiting a few months could mean twice that. Maybe more. Today’s offer was a pittance to Assurance; their reputation of denying and delaying claims, wringing people to the point of desperation, was legendary. Ellie had trained in a shark tank. If only Fernanda would let her circle a little longer.Ellie hesitated. “Yes, we can draw up the paperwork today. But Fernanda … you’re sure? Just a few months more and —”How could she put it to Fernanda? How could she persuade this woman to wait even a day longer in this horrendous situation?“Escucha, Fernanda. Podría ser mejor ...

The Wait Is Over

Dear Readers and Listeners:Many of you over the past 7 months (since “For the Forces of Good” first released) have implored me for an audio edition; and a significant subset of people also encouraged ME to narrate it. The wait is over: TODAY, the full audio edition of “For the Forces of Good: The Superpower Of Everyday Negotiation” is now available.Click here for the full audiobook.I had been “dripping” chapters here to hold you over, but no need to do so anymore. In fact, I do not feel compelled to continue my Substack publications on any regular basis. There’s enough content by me out there in the blogosphere now (many interviews: print / audio / video / even a feature in a special edition book by a UK fashion magazine), in addition to the book. I don’t have to keep doing “all the things.”Also be on the lookout for my next book, releasing on May 14, 2023 (one month from today! - sneak peek on Amazon already announced). It’s quite the departure from “For the Forces of Good” and a WILD RIDE! (the chosen publication date is a hint . . .).THANK YOU for reading and for listening. Now, go PRACTICE; and be your super selves (which means you're “good enough” self for that particular day). I don’t want you to need me or hire me. You can do it!

Are Your "Spidey Senses" Tingling?

Are your “Spidey Senses” tingling?⭐️ EVERYDAY NEGOTIATION SUPER TIP: Those who can tap into their intuition AND their cognitive signaling at appropriate moments depending on the unique context and the players at hand are truly next-level negotiators, strategists, and decision-makers.Turns out, Authority Magazine considers it pretty stealth, too. That’s why they interviewed me about it. Read the article here⭐️ SCAVENGER HUNT: find where I use the highly technical term “loosey goosey;” learn who my celebrity crush is; and count how many times I mention Thor (as in god of thunder) . . .“Spidey Sense” is also chapter 4 of my sexy, splashy, “best book on negotiation ever written” - For the Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation - where you can find sooooo many more everyday super tips; and Episode 6 of my podcast, which you can find right here on Substack.Thanks for reading and being a Force of Good! 🦸🏻‍♀️Thanks for reading Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

"Get Out of Your Comfort Zone"? Let's Get Real.

Link to print interview: https://medium.com/authority-magazine/lucia-kanter-st-amour-of-pactum-factum-on-how-to-grow-beyond-your-comfort-zone-to-grow-both-persona-320b964c37e4Link to Lucia’s bestselling book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B92HCMWB

Special Espresso Shot Edition 10.26.22

Pot of Gold. 2022. Watercolor on paper by Lucia Kanter St. AmourClick here for my best-selling book, “For the Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation”

Narration Nook - The Preface

While we await production of the audiobook edition of my best-selling book, For the Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation, I will periodically drip a chapter (narrated by ME!) here. I’ll also share the accompanying art (18 original works - mostly by me). This first one is called “Garage Sale Lemonade.” So, let’s begin with the Preface . . .Garage Sale Lemonade. Watercolor on paper by Lucia Kanter St. Amour

NPR Interview of Lucia's Best-Selling Book!

Hello Substack Followers!Click here for the NPR interview of my newly released Robert Cialdini-praised book, which shot to #1 Best Seller on Amazon within 10 days, For the Forces of Good: The Superpower of Everyday Negotiation (30 minutes to listen):

Episode 18: Negotiation Fake Book

With co-host Nina Greeley

Episode 17: The Trunk Room Negotiation

Episode 16: Zeus v. DesCartes

With co-host Nina GreeleyArt by Katherine Lemke