Mirroring
Repeat the last few words the other person said, as a question, to keep them talking and feeling heard.
How it sounds
- Buyer This timeline is going to be a problem for us.
- You A problem for you?
- Result They rush to fill the silence, explaining what really matters.
The full entry
Mirroring is repeating the last one to three words someone said, back to them as a question. It signals you are listening and gently pushes them to say more, usually the part that matters. Chris Voss describes it in Never Split the Difference (2016), drawing on his years as an FBI hostage negotiator.
To use it: they say “This timeline is going to be a problem for us.” You say “A problem for you?” Then stop talking. The silence after the mirror does half the work, because people rush to fill it and explain themselves.
It works best early, while you are still learning what the buyer actually cares about, and when you genuinely let the pause sit. The mistake is overusing it in one call, at which point it turns into parroting and the other person notices the trick.