Now look here, I’m speaking metaphorically when I say don’t shoot all your bullets when making a rational argument against an opponent. I’m not talking about real bullets, I’m talking about key points in your logical argument that will bring your opponents to their senses.
Remember the saying is bring them to their senses, don’t bring them to their knees.
Now why I bring this all up is because at times I’ve had to take up the cudgels to protect my interests. For example, challenging the arguments of a supplier who did work but it was not compliant with legislation. I unfortunately had to address it.
This brings me to another important point, which is pick your fights carefully. Now you can’t go rushing out like a bull, arguing with everyone. If it’s a serious issue such as where you are faced with the prospect of material loss, then you have to weigh up the cost and benefits.
If you’re going to lose money or have to pay for something yourself because somebody else didn’t do their job properly, then you may have to actively take up cudgels ?against unethical conduct, fraudulent action and the morally wrong.
When I discussed my argument about the supplier with an old friend, he was all for threatening them and contacting the local authorities.
I told him to hold on, that’s not my style or my temperament. I don’t want to shoot all my bullets at once. I have some rational arguments that I will use in the early stages, but then will come in with additional arguments as the supplier argues their case.
This is important. I’ll tell you why it’s important. It’s because life is a game and business is a game and conflict is a game. You usually stand a 50-50 chance of winning or losing in anything you do. That’s why it’s important to not get too heavily emotionally invested in anything. For those who are interested check out the Nash equilibrium.
It’s best to take a step backwards and think about whether to become actively involved in defending your case or putting your viewpoint forward or withdrawing.
Sometimes the best strategy is to simply walk away.
There are many situations in life where walking away will save you a lot of trouble, time, money and emotional upheaval.
Now I come to the point about business writing. When writing a serious complaint, you need to do your homework. You need to research all the issues around the problem. You need to be sure of your facts. You need to hold some arguments in reserve and you need to be careful what you say. It’s also best if you are totally and absolutely emotionally removed from your own situation. A hard call but if you aren’t you’re going to lose.
It’s no use making bold, unsubstantiated statements against other people. You’ll just get yourself into trouble. This is where the skill comes in. Either you represent your case well and get the other party to act in your favour or you lose.
If you lose, you have to take a step back and fight another battle another day.
Should you want help with anything like this, let me know via email. If we meet face to face, the coffee will be on me.