Mastering Time Pressure: Staying Cool When the Clock Is Ticking

When you hear the phrase "the clock is ticking," what's your immediate reaction? For most people, it automatically creates pressure and triggers a rush mentality. This is where negotiations start to fall apart - when time pressure hits, the first things to go are effective listening and curiosity.

I've seen this play out countless times with our clients at The Black Swan Group. People feel the pressure of a deadline, and suddenly they're cutting corners, missing signals, and failing to achieve the outcomes they want.

The Time Pressure Trap

When time becomes a factor in negotiations, your brain often starts telling you dangerous lies: "I need to hurry up and get this done" or "I don't have time to listen fully."

Think about what happens when someone tells you they only have 15 minutes for a call. Instead of staying focused on understanding their goals and objectives, making them feel heard, you start pressuring yourself to get your message out. You begin talking faster, thinking more about what you want to say than what they're telling you.

Here's the problem: the other side can feel when you're rushing. They sense your hurry, and it immediately triggers distrust. They start wondering, "Why are they pushing me so quickly? What's the hidden agenda here?"

Your fear—that you've been working on this deal too long without progress, that you might fail, that your career might suffer—creates pressure that the other person can sense a mile away.

The Elevator Pitch Problem

You’ve probably had someone ask you for "the elevator pitch". They're effectively saying, "Hurry up, I don't have much time for you."

Most people respond by talking faster and cramming as many selling points as possible into that brief window. But what if you took a different approach?

Instead of pitching your agenda, make it about them. If you focus on their needs, goals, and challenges, they'll gladly take that elevator back up and ride it down several more times. Why? Because the conversation is about them, and people love talking about themselves.

I've had calls where the other person said, "I only have five minutes," and I responded with, "It sounds like you have a vision on how you see us possibly working together in the future." They started telling me what they were looking for, and 15 minutes later, they were still talking—and didn't mind at all.

When you become likable by demonstrating genuine interest in the other person, you're six times more likely to do business with them. Time constraints suddenly become less rigid.

Demonstrating Time Respect

One powerful technique we teach is to respect time boundaries scrupulously. If someone gives you one minute and thirty-eight seconds, use your stopwatch and stop at exactly that time. Then say, "I didn’t want to go past the one minute and thirty-eight seconds because I know how valuable your time is. Would you be against looking for another time when we can have more time to discuss this?”

This builds tremendous rapport because you've demonstrated—not just claimed—that you respect their time. You've listened to them, honored their boundary (and autonomy), and shown Tactical Empathy^® in action.

Most people will try to extend that time limit and jam in more information. By respecting it, you stand out and move to the front of the line. It's the same principle Chris Voss used when told to volunteer for a suicide hotline to become a hostage negotiator—when you follow through on what others suggest, you demonstrate respect and build trust.

Handling Real Time Pressure

What if the time pressure is real and unavoidable? Be transparent about it with an Accusations Audit™: "You probably think I'm being pushy…" Then follow with a Proof of Life™ question: "Out of all the people you could be talking to, why are you giving me this opportunity to have this conversation?"

This shifts the focus back to them and their perception of your value. Instead of frantically pitching, you're getting them to tell you why they should invest more time with you.

If they don't see you in their vision for the future, they likely had no intention of doing business with you anyway. They're just checking boxes, and no amount of rushed pitching would have changed that outcome.

Slowing Down the Clock

The secret to mastering time pressure is counter-intuitive: focus completely on your counterpart. When you take the time to truly understand what they're saying—what they've probably been trying to tell you multiple times—the perceived pressure often disappears.

The moment they feel heard and understood, they'll think, "Finally, someone gets it!" And suddenly, time constraints become irrelevant.

Practice by monitoring how much you speak versus other person. Use Summarizing to demonstrate your listening, and stay curious about what they're really saying. Clear your head of distractions before important negotiations so you can focus entirely on understanding the other person.

Remember: Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. When you stop rushing and make it about the other side, you'll be amazed at how quickly things come together.