When logic isn’t enough

Ideas and great solutions are born where opinions collide. That’s especially true in tech: we think in terms of concepts and tackle dozens of complex, contentious questions every day. On top of that, we have data and metrics: we can trace the impact of any change to the product and predict which option is best.

In that context, it’s very easy for an engineer to fall into a trap and start relying on rational arguments alone. It can feel as though, if you just show one more chart or explain the architecture a little better, your solution will sell itself. It’s hard to admit, but in technical negotiations, the winner usually isn’t the person with the most rational arguments.

If someone doesn’t want to accept your point of view at a given moment, additional logical arguments are unlikely to change that. To break the deadlock, you have to stop and make an effort to put yourself in that person’s shoes — to understand their view of the world, their constraints, and their fears.

Maybe I’m missing something, but here’s what I’ve taken away so far:

• —Address objections to your current arguments before adding new ones.
• —Be prepared to be wrong and to hear something you won’t like. You’ll have to account for things that contradict your experience and logic.
• —You’ll have to put yourself in that person’s place — and that means considering not just their role, but also their context, timing, motivation, and the pressure they’re under.
• —If you can’t get the idea across right now, pause and think.
• —Don’t jump to solutions too early. You need to build a narrative in which the solution is simply one of the steps.

Logic is great, but don’t lose sight of irrationality.