Chris Voss: Clarify a Change Before Restarting the Work

The Lesson

You are partway through a small job when the requester adds something: another file format, a new audience or an earlier delivery time. Before replying that it is fine, clarify what has actually changed and how the revised work would happen.

In his December 2024 article about agreement and implementation, Chris Voss argues that an affirmative response alone is a poor substitute for understanding how work will be carried out. His official Black Swan Group biography provides context for his negotiation teaching. Apply that communication distinction to a revised work request. This is not a statement about what creates a legally binding agreement.

A change request can contain several changes at once. “Can you make it ready for everyone by tomorrow?” might change the audience, amount of work and timing. Treat those as questions to clarify. Do not assume the requester knows every consequence, and do not assume they intend to take advantage of you.

Begin with the current task as you understand it. Then identify the requested difference. A factual comparison gives both people something to correct. “The current task is a one-page handout for the workshop; the new request adds a poster for the entrance” is more useful than “This keeps getting bigger.”

Next, distinguish a known consequence from an estimate or an open question. An entrance poster needs a different layout. How long that layout will take may still be an estimate. Whether someone can approve the wording tonight may be unknown. Keeping those states visible prevents a guess from becoming an accidental promise.

Clarification does not require immediate acceptance. You can explain what needs a decision and offer a suitable alternative. Perhaps the original item stays on its existing schedule while the new item is considered separately. Perhaps a lower-priority item is removed. Sometimes the responsible answer is that you cannot take on the change.

Keep the conversation about the work and the people authorized to decide it. This practice does not determine fees, interpret a contract or replace professional advice. It helps you prepare a clear request for a decision before continuing with a different job.

Reflection

• What was the current task before this request arrived?
• Which part of the result, audience, quantity or timing may have changed?
• What consequence can I establish, and what am I only estimating?
• Who needs to decide before the revised work can begin?

Practice

Original SelfGrowthVideos exercise. The change comparison below is not a Black Swan worksheet, a contract template or an endorsed negotiation script.

Use a fictional project: a volunteer organizer requested one printable activity sheet. You have a draft ready for review. The organizer now asks for a wall poster with different instructions as well, while keeping the original review time.

Make a short comparison with four rows: deliverable, intended use, wording and review. For each row, record the current plan, requested difference and unresolved question. You know there is a second deliverable and a different use. You do not yet know whether the new instructions are approved or who will review them.

Draft a response that does three things:

1. Describes the difference without assigning a motive.
2. Asks one practical question needed to understand the change.
3. States what decision is needed before you restart the work.

For example: “The current draft is the printable activity sheet. The new request adds an entrance poster with different instructions. Who will approve that wording? I can keep the sheet ready for its original review while we decide whether to add the poster and agree its review time.”

Test your response against two fictional replies. In the first, the organizer confirms the approved wording and offers a separate review time. In the second, they say the wording is not ready but ask you to begin anyway. Note what you can proceed with in each case and which decision remains open. Do not turn missing information into invented instructions.

Finally, write a revised task note for the first case, distinguishing the sheet from the poster and naming the separate review points. For the second case, preserve the unresolved question rather than marking the changed work agreed.

Review

Did your comparison reveal a real difference, or was the request already part of the task? Either finding matters. Correct the comparison if you misunderstood the original request.

Read the proposed response again. Does it explain the practical issue without threatening, cornering or diagnosing the other person? Does it leave them able to correct your understanding? Choose one improvement before using the approach in suitable ordinary work. Clearer preparation can support a conversation; it cannot guarantee agreement.

Go Deeper

Explore Chris Voss’s existing profile and Starting & Managing the Work. Review Alex Hormozi: Separate a Service Promise From Delivery for the original delivery plan, and Jocko Willink: Debrief a Project Handoff for a later review. The Business Launchpad delivery module connects scope questions with broader responsibilities.