Former Trump Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs and National Security Advisor Robert C. O’Brien discusses behind-the-scenes negotiation lessons from hostage cases and major foreign-policy deals.

O’Brien describes his approach as implementing President Trump’s decisions, crediting that alignment for successes including the Abraham Accords.

He gives a candid look at what operations inside the Trump administration looks like. Robert and Stan weigh the merits and perils of Trump's personal negotiating style and the effects it might have on the U.S standing in the world.

00:00 Trump Negotiation Style

00:26 Meet Robert OBrien

01:39 ASAP Rocky Case

03:30 Tough Talk With Sweden

05:27 From Hostages To NSA

07:27 Abraham Accords Breakthrough

10:59 Kushner And Internal Pushback

12:07 West Bank Red Line

14:25 Maximalism And Greenland

17:35 Unpredictability And Kissinger

19:48 Taiwan And China Strategy

21:55 Allies And Burden Sharing

24:38 Soleimani And Syria Deal

27:51 Erdogan And Long Term Ties

31:17 Negotiation Skills And Unity

Host Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.

In this conversation with Fareed Zakaria, the discussion centers on negotiation as the core of foreign policy and the danger of confusing tactical success with strategic clarity.

Zakaria weighs in on the U.S conflict in Iran and shares a dire warning about how it could affect U.S negotiations for years to come.

Stan and Fareed discuss a wide range of bilateral relationships and the potential risk of an “imperial trap” we might be falling into as we erode trust and the post-1945 order.

Check out Fareed on his podcast:

https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/fareed-zakaria-gps

And CNN: https://podcasts.apple.com/iq/podcast/fareed-zakaria-gps/id377785090

00:00 Tactics vs Strategy

01:33 Iran Talks Undermined

03:46 Israel US Goals Diverge

06:00 Iraq Lessons and Aims

08:20 Pressuring Israel

12:25 China Reads the Signals

15:11 Tariffs and Trust

18:01 Allies and Supply Chains

21:55 India and Turkey

23:11 Turkey Drifts Westward

23:59 Pressuring Putin to Talk

25:43 Both Sides and Overreach

28:50 Norms Versus Guardrails

32:00 Why Congress Stays Silent

35:35 Can GOP Reclaim Reagan

38:03 Democrats and Culture Wars

42:10 Great Negotiators and Wrap

Host Stan Christensen has spent his career working as a professional negotiator in a variety of arenas. He has also taught a popular course on negotiation at Stanford University for over twenty years.

In this podcast episode, Stan welcomes investor and CEO Jenna Nicholas to discuss the growing inflection point where financial performance aligns with social and environmental impact.

They explore Nicholas’s book, "The Enlightened Bottom Line: Exploring the Intersection of Spirituality, Business and Investing," including her motivation to interview investors and business leaders about transformational moments, values, and legacy.

Nicholas shares case studies such as Patagonia’s Holdfast Collective structure to perpetuate environmental impact, Panera’s COVID-era partnership to provide school lunches through USDA support, and companies like Devoted Health and Barry-Wehmiller that connect trust and empathy to business performance.

Check out Jenna's book at: https://www.jenna-nicholas.com/

00:00 Impact Investing Inflection

00:57 Negotiation Lessons Revisited

01:48 Why Write The Book

04:26 Patagonia And Panera Stories

07:33 HEAL Framework Explained

08:15 ESG Goes Mainstream

14:46 Convincing The Skeptics

17:00 Trust Purpose And Performance

19:39 Spirituality At Work

23:13 Embedding Values In Culture

25:21 What Is Impact Experience

33:40 Measuring Outcomes And Commitments

35:50 Education Equity Breakthroughs

41:47 Deep Listening As Persuasion

44:36 Closing Thoughts And Book Plug