2023 William Oxley Thompson Alumni Award Christian

When I got to law school, I stumbled into a negotiation class, and it was life changing. For most of my life, I’d been a people pleaser and wasn't very good at difficult conversations. For the first time I realized that negotiation is a skill, not a talent, and I could get better at it. I discovered other people were struggling with this, too, and that inspired me to teach these skills.

A successful negotiation is all about progress. Negotiation isn’t the art of deal making; it’s the art of deal discovery. You’re working with the other side to see if a deal is possible, and even if you don't get a deal, you can still make progress by learning more about the other person and deepening the relationship. To negotiate effectively, you need three main skills: ask better questions, become a better listener and manage the emotions in the room.

My parents, who are both immigrants. Dad became a surgeon, and Mom got her PhD and is a nutritionist and professor. I’ve modeled my work ethic after them. They gave me a great foundation and education that’s led me to this point.

My motto is, “The best things in life are on the other side of difficult conversations.” By having those difficult conversations, you can get the information you need to make better decisions and to understand your next steps for solving a problem.

My team and I are creating the world’s first artificial intelligence negotiation coach. People will be able to use the AI coach to prepare for negotiations. I think some of the most important conversations in the future will be about artificial intelligence, and I always want to be where the toughest conversations are.