My First Million
The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.
“Compromise is to make something lose lose”
What It Means
Traditional compromise forces both parties to give up value, creating suboptimal outcomes for everyone
Why It Matters
Challenges conventional wisdom about negotiation and points toward collaborative value creation instead
When It's True
When there are creative solutions possible that could satisfy both parties better than splitting the difference
When It's Risky
When time constraints require quick resolution, or when parties are inflexible about equal treatment
How to Apply
Look for asymmetric combinations that create more total value
Resist defaulting to 50/50 splits
Invest time in understanding what each party really contributes
Focus on outcome quality rather than input equality
Example Scenario
“Instead of splitting marketing budget 50/50 between partners, discover one excels at content (90%) while other provides distribution (10%), creating a 'steel-like' combination that's stronger than equal split.”
Related Knowledge
Tactical Empathy Framework
Demonstrating understanding of another person's emotions and perspective without agreeing, designed to build trust and e
Listening Hijack Prevention Framework
A system to resist the two main impulses that destroy active listening: the urge to correct and the urge to relate
Steel Negotiation Model
A framework that replaces 50/50 compromise with finding the optimal blend of ideas, like steel being 2% carbon and 98% i
Build trust and gather proprietary information before making any deal proposals
The other party voluntarily shares information they normally wouldn't reveal, both parties understand the real constrain
Apply hostage negotiation principles to business deals for better outcomes
The other party feels safe enough to share their real concerns, both parties work together to solve the underlying probl
Problem Across the Table Model
Visualize both parties sitting on the same side of the table with the problem/obstacle on the other side, rather than ad