The Conflict Expert

This is the first in a series of posts dedicated to providing you with conflict resolution resources.

As a celebrated business man and politician, President Trump should know a thing or two about the subject and, as world events demonstrate, he is not afraid of conflict. Read on for a summary of this book and my analysis of it from a conflict perspective. It’s all personal opinion and it is not politically motivated in any way.

The Art of the Deal by Donald Trump (co-written with Tony Schwartz) is part memoir, part business advice book published in 1987. It outlines Trump’s approach to deal-making, business strategy, and personal philosophy.

The book gives us a fascinating insight into New York in the 80’s and 90’s where the men that dominated industries fought tooth and nail to get what they wanted. His approach to business is fast paced and pretty frenetic and takes us through his clashes, negotiations and deals.

He and his co-writer spell out for the reader, Trump’s business principles, all of which he says, have been instrumental in his successes. He is presented as a master negotiator and much is made of his real estate acquisitions such as Trump Towers, Mar-a-Lago and The Grand Hyatt in New York.

Here are the key points of his advice.

• Think Big – Have a grand vision and aim high.
• Maximize Options – Always have alternatives in negotiations.
• Know Your Market – Be well-informed about industry trends.
• Use Leverage – Understand and use your power in deals.
• Enhance Your Location – Improve and promote the value of your assets.
• Get the Word Out – Use publicity and media to your advantage.
• Fight Back – Stand firm in conflicts and never back down easily.
• Deliver the Goods – Provide value and follow through on promises.
• Contain Costs – Keep expenses under control.
• Have Fun – Enjoy what you do to stay motivated.

There was no mention of his failures such as Trump Airlines, Trump Taj Mahal Casino, Trump Hotels and Casinos Resorts, Trump Entertainment, Trump Vodka, Trump University, Trump Steaks, and several others. All of these businesses either failed, ended in lawsuits and closure for defrauding students or were bankrupted.

In general, the principles seem fairly obvious- most entrepreneurs think big and are ambitious in attaining their goals and it’s always advisable to know the market one is going to trade in! In light of some of his business failures and the the allegations of fraud (the case was settled without fault by Trump for USD 25 million), one wonders how sincere he was about providing value and following through on promises.

When it comes to leverage, it’s again, standard practice to know what your alternatives are in negotiation – generally referred to as a BATNA- which is much more technically expressed by the authors of Getting to Yes

Where Trump’s approach falls apart is in his inflexible use of domination and power to bring his negotiating partners to their knees. What happens if you are on an equal footing with your counter-part? What if you need them to fulfill an interest of yours? What if you need or want to resolve conflict with them and to continue a business relationship or create a solution that benefits you both ? What if you do leverage your power to such an extent that not only is your relationship with this person destroyed but also your reputation in consequence ? Clearly, the hard man image has worked out quite well for Trump…. until he met Putin, but that’s a different blog post.

But if you’re reading this, I suspect you don’t have the same leverage as Trump (and if you do, great!) Any conflict resolution strategy needs a degree of flexibility in case information comes to light that undermines your interests. One of those interests may be your reputation, your relationships and/or future business opportunities. Trump knows this because he has settled contentious legal disputes for millions of dollars (to Stormy Daniels, for example) and I have no doubt that his lawyers were telling him that a successful law suit in his opponent’s favour, could expose some very unsavoury facts. Domination will only create anger, frustration and destruction which could have repercussions as simple as revenge. It doesn’t make you tough. It makes you inflexible, stubborn and probably lacking in judgment. Politeness, respect and likability are persuasive qualities in any negotiator and empathy is so powerful, it should be a key skill in your conflict resolution tool kit.

Whilst this is a great read to gain insight into President’s Trump’s life in 80’s New York, it’s not that helpful if you’re using it as your sole resource to perfect your negotiation skills.