Tactical empathy is the practice of understanding another person’s perspective and emotions without endorsing their position or agreeing with their conclusions. This distinction is what makes the technique tactical rather than merely empathetic. Most people confuse empathy with agreement, believing that understanding how someone feels means you must concede to what they want. This confusion causes negotiators to avoid empathizing because they fear it weakens their position. Tactical empathy eliminates this problem by separating understanding from agreement, allowing you to build rapport and gather information without surrendering leverage. The core insight is that people negotiate more productively when they feel...