It’s Time to Abandon Trump’s Flawed Negotiation Playbook
By Michele Gelfand, Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Stanford University
The best negotiators are never the loudest people in the room. They are the ones who can discern interests, create trust, and build lasting relationships.
US President Donald Trump isn’t one of them, which is why his approach – featuring extreme demands, personal attacks, and a refusal to compromise – has repeatedly backfired. What might well work in the dog-eat-dog world of New York real estate does not translate to the global stage. Without a major pivot, this cycle will only repeat itself, jeopardizing America’s interests, both now and for years to come.
Consider Trump’s position on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Describing it as “perhaps the worst trade deal ever made,” he began his first term with a vow either to overhaul or abandon it. He did neither. After months of threats and ultimatums that alienated allies, he settled for modest revisions and a name change. The resulting United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) left most of NAFTA’s core framework intact.