There are some new ideas in the audio program that were not in Camp’s two previous bestselling books. Camp became fascinated with recent research in the field of neuroscience that deals with how the human brain makes decisions. For example, scientists now know that all decisions are made emotionally, 100 percent of the time. We may think we’re being logical as we accrete a long list of facts to back up our decision. But the actual decision takes place in the emotional area of our brain. Why is this important? If you know this is how your opponent will ultimately come to a decision, then your job becomes one of building a vision for the other party that will appeal to their emotional brain. Camp shows us how to do this. The best part about this is that your opponent won’t have any idea what you’re doing, because he still believes it’s reason that’s driving his decision.
Camp talks about another science-based finding, “fixed mindset” versus “growth mindset.” Researchers have found that the more masterful and knowledgeable we get in our field, the more “fixed” our mindset becomes. For example, a typical negotiator will tend to rely on what he knows — his expertise — when he should be focusing on what he doesn’t know, says Camp. He helps us retrain our brains so we stay open to discovery in the negotiation, and resist our urge to make assumptions or second guess what our opponent is thinking or wanting. That’s the growth mindset, and Camp shows how very useful it can be in managing your decisions. What’s more, since your opponent is very likely relying on what he knows and what he believes you’ll do (fixed mindset), you will gain the upper hand by applying a completely different scientific principle to the process.
Camp shares so many nifty techniques, I began to worry that he was giving up too many of his secrets. For example, he presents well-known negotiation tactics you’re likely to face, and then shows, calmly and methodically, how to completely neutralize each one. He also goes through, one by one, all the common stumbling blocks that appear in negotiations. Like what to do if the other party bullies you or is excessively negative. Or what to do if the other party tells you their absolute price — and then says they won’t budge from this number. Camp has a way to deal with any tactic your opponent throws at you. Why? Because they have tactics but you have principles. Once you embrace the principles of the Camp System, your principles beat their tactics every time.
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