Thank Goodness It's Monday #313

STONEWALLING –

YES, OR NO?

First, an apology: All the apparently no-progress “bargaining” going on in Washington DC keeps pulling my thoughts in the direction of good-business-practices negotiation.

So if you’ve been longing for a TGIM that’s more motivation/inspiration –

Maybe next Monday.

Today I’m focused on the idea of “stonewalling.”

“There stood Jackson like a stone wall.” In one form or another, that characterization, by the dying Confederate Civil War Brigadier General Bernard Bee of his fellow General at the first Battle of Bull Run around Manassas, Virginia in July of 1861, stuck with Thomas Jonathan (a.k.a. “Stonewall”) Jackson the rest of his life.

Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson
January 21, 1824(1824-01-21) – May 10, 1863(1863-05-10)

The stirring image captured imaginations everywhere, North and South.

But in that regard military historian John C. Waugh notes: “Tom Jackson had attracted attention to himself simply by being himself – unreasonably adamant.” (Jackson had also been nicknamed “Tom Fool.”)

Obstinate, stubborn fool or not: A West Point graduate, Stonewall Jackson is respected as a military tactician of the first order. His proven-under-fire ideas are taught even today in recognition of their timeless military essentials: discipline, mobility, assessing the enemy's strength and intentions while attempting to conceal your own, and the efficiency of artillery combined with an infantry assault.

Which gets us back to –

Stonewalling in the 21^st Century. The lineage of Jackson's Confederate Army unit, the Stonewall Brigade, continues to the present day in form of the 116th Infantry Brigade of the U.S. Army, currently part of the Virginia National Guard. At Virginia Military Institute where he taught before the Civil War, a bronze statue of Jackson stands outside the main entrance to the cadet barracks; first-year cadets exiting the barracks through that archway are required to honor Jackson's memory by saluting the statue.

And in the workplace: In current parlance, stonewalling has come to mean a stubborn refusal to move from one position – a mix of the tough hero General with just a suspicion of “Tom Fool” thrown in.

You know how it goes: In general, like the General, the negotiator treats his position as being incapable of change and simply refuses every attempt by the opposition to compromise or alter the position.

Some negotiators will plead that their stonewall position represents the best they can possibly do.

An even harsher stonewall tactic: Escalate or increase the demands as time passes.  This tactic involves moving further away from an agreement in hope of coercing the opponent into immediately accepting the present offer.

The attempt, of course, is to convince opponents that there’s no room left to negotiate.

“That’s all I’ve got.”

“Take it or leave it.”

“It’s our last, best and final offer.”

Is it really? Maybe … Maybe not …

Do stonewall tactics work?

TGIM Truth: More often than not, yes.

But there are a few cautions.

• When you make a take-it-or-leave-it offer, you better be prepared for your opponent to “leave it.” If you have no other alternatives, backtracking will probably mean that you will be forced to accept your opponent’s last offer.
• Once you back away from a stonewall position, the tactic will never have the same strength again. The opponent will have every reason to consider it a bluff the next time you try it.

TGIM ACTION IDEA: The decision to hold your ground should be based on a firm, thoroughly researched foundation. Stonewall-final offers based on guesses are nothing more than gambles.

TGIM IDEA IN ACTION: For business purposes (who can fathom the political mind?) a complete-as-possible knowledge of the market … actual costs in the market … and sound intelligence about the opponent’s position will greatly enhance your ability to set specific targets and stand your ground like a stone wall, confident in the knowledge that your opponent will accept your “final” offer.

And speaking “finally:” You must be convincing. A last … best … and final offer made with the slightest hint of “but if that isn’t good enough, let us know” will hardly do anything but encourage the opponent to keep pushing for more … More … MORE!

The tone, manner of presentation, and context of a stonewall position must convey your uncompromising firmness.

And that’s TGIM for today. Really. Finally. Except for the small bits in the post script below. (So much for uncompromising firmness.)

Geoff Steck
Chief Catalyst
Alexander Publishing & Marketing

8 Depot Square
Englewood, NJ 07631
201-569-5373
tgimguy@gmail.com   

P.S.  “Always mystify, mislead, and surprise the enemy, if possible; and when you strike and overcome him, never let up in the pursuit so long as your men have strength to follow; for an army routed, if hotly pursued, becomes panic-stricken, and can then be destroyed by half their number. The other rule is, never fight against heavy odds, if by any possible maneuvering you can hurl your own force on only a part, and that the weakest part, of your enemy and crush it. Such tactics will win every time, and a small army may thus destroy a large one in detail, and repeated victory will make it invincible.” That was Stonewall Jackson’s strategic advice to John D. Imboden who commanded an artillery battery at Bull Run and was later promoted Brigadier General himself.