On April 12, my wife and I left Mesquite around 9 a.m. to go to the Clark County Fair in Logandale. We saw an electronic warning sign about vehicles entering and leaving the freeway, and then we were frightened when we saw about 30 white big-ass vans parked on the side of the road. We didn’t know what to think. We saw the white vans again when we returned to Mesquite in the late afternoon. Later on, we discovered they were part of the BLM-Bundy confrontation.
We attended the Bundy BBQ the next weekend. Lots of people. Don’t know if the crowd was bigger at the BBQ or at the April 12 confrontation. I talked to many people at the BBQ. Most of them thought that the presence of so many Bundy supporters on April 12 made the BLM back down and not confiscate Bundy’s cattle. That must have been part of it—but only part! In fact, Bundy and his supporters used many of my 365 influence weapons which are contained in several of my books, including365 Powerful Ways to Influence, Guerrilla Deal-Making, and The Way of the Warrior in Business. (You can see them on Amazon.com.) Here are the 8 tactics Bundy and his backers used—twice as many as the BLM used:
Assertive tactic 57 in my list of 365 influence weapons: Negotiate where you have the most power—your place.
Assertive 59: Size of your negotiating team—be bigger than their team.
Assertive 69: Make the other side realize you’re very committed to your goals.
Assertive 70: Be brave, not scared.
Assertive 51: Confront the other side—call their bluff.
Assertive 51; Confront the other side again by telling them through the media, “Why are you using dirty tricks on me, and when will you stop?”
Defensive 25: Adopt a fortress mentality—secure your secrets and assets.
Defensive 35: I won’t go against my ethics.
The Bundy supporters used 8 of my 365 tactics. I don’t think Bundy and his supporters used my Assertive weapon 77—threaten the other side with actual physical violence. And I don’t think the BLM used this tactic, either—thank goodness! Things could have gotten very, very bad!
In contrast, the BLM used only 4 of my 365 tactics:
Assertive 91: Intimidate the other side by your credentials.
Assertive 86: Intimidate the other side by lawful, legitimate power. It didn’t work, and I feel that’s probably why the BLM eventually backed down.
Assertive 64: Take it first, then talk about it. (The BLM tried to use this tactic, but Bundy’s supporters made sure it failed miserably.)
Dirty trick 51: Scare the hell out of the other side—make him fear you. (It also failed miserably. Bundy and his supporters weren’t intimidated.)
Thank goodness the BLM didn’t use my dirty trick 53—actual violence, brute force.
Both sides used my Assertive tactics 111 (dares and the game of chicken) and 112 (threaten doomsday).
I think the Battle of Bunkerville is far from over. So watch out. The BLM will probably use my assertive tactic 102—flexible persistence (the squeaky wheel)), as well as assertive tactic 103—nibble away…wear out the other side, outlast him. They also may now be using my dirty trick 56—lie about withdrawing—the BLM is still there, hiding behind intermediaries.
And the BLM may very well have an ace up its sleeve—let’s see if they will use my Assertive tactic 117 (never waste a crisis). I’ve heard that Attorney General Eric Holder uses this tactic quite often. And if Holder read my books, he’ll probably cover things up by using my Assertive tactic 31—when you do things right, people won’t be sure you did anything at all. In other words, Holder and the BLM will use my defensive tactic 21—appear as harmless at TV’s detective Columbo—then zap the other side at the end, perhaps by using my dirty trick 19—a frivolous lawsuit to harass the other side. Before a lawsuit happens, though, Holder and the BLM will probably continue to use my defensive tactic 53—use creative vagueness.
What will Bundy and his supporters do? I think he’ll continue to use my defensive tactics 2 (ask for sympathy) and 3 (use people’s sense of ethics, justice, and morality). In other words, he probably will give a few more interviews, but he’ll be more careful about what he says. I think Bundy should have used my defensive tactic 10 (complete, total silence) at the end instead of giving out so many interviews. His interviews indicated to me that he was subconsciously using my defensive tactic 67—take an ego trip, acting like a VIP or big dog.
What advice do I have for Bundy? Use 3 of my defensive tactics:
Find allies and use them (76).
Find prestigious allies and use them (77).
And 79 (get good publicity from the news media). Bundy may have trouble using tactic 79, though, since so much of the news media seems to have a liberal slant.
Above all, Mr. Bundy, don’t lose your momentum—don’t give in to unreasonable demands (defensive tactic 89). And don’t use dirty tricks 25 (act untouchable by claiming “I’m entitled to special privileges”), 26 (act holier-than-thou / phony sanctimony), and 27 (act smug).
What can we conclude from all this? Perhaps just this: We live in interesting times, don’t we?
Dr. Donald Wayne Hendon is a consultant, speaker, trainer, and author of 14 books, including The Way of the Warrior in Business, Guerrilla Deal-Making (with Jay Conrad Levinson) and 365 Powerful Ways to Influence. Jay Levinson recently passed away. He specifically chose Don to be his final co-author—the person most qualified to carry the torch of guerrilla marketing into the 21st century. Deal-Making contains the 100 most powerful tactics from 365 Powerful Ways—along with 400 winning countermeasures. There are 121 aggressive tactics, 92 defensive ones, 24 cooperative ones, and 16 submissive ones to get what you want from other people. Plus 81 dirty tricks to watch out for and 31 tactics to prepare you for your interaction with them. Download Chapter 1, free of charge, at www.DonaldHendon.com. Play Don’s free online Negotiation Poker game by going to GuerrillaDon.com. Apps will soon be available.
