𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗼𝘂𝗿”: What a Tunisian tea service taught me about boardroom silence.

𝗜 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗻𝗲𝗴𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱. I was wrong. It is what happens when nobody is talking.

I learnt this lesson in the mountains of Toujane, watching a Berber vendor prepare tea.

He didn’t rush. He didn’t fill the space with a sales pitch or “justifications” for the price of his rugs.

He simply poured the tea from a height—a long, steady stream that creates a thick foam—and then he sat in total, comfortable silence.

In the West, particularly in business, we are terrified of silence. We view it as an “𝗮𝘄𝗸𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗴𝗮𝗽” that needs to be filled.

When we state a price or a proposal and the other person doesn’t immediately respond, our anxiety spikes.

We feel the urge to:

  • Offer a “pre-emptive” discount.
  • Explain our “value proposition” for the fifth time.
  • Ask “Does that make sense?” just to hear a human voice.

In that moment of “filling the gap”, we usually negotiate against ourselves.

𝙎𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙞𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙖 𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙙; 𝙞𝙩’𝙨 𝙖 𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙧.

When you stop talking after stating your terms, you hand the emotional “weight” of the conversation to the other person.

They are forced to confront their own thoughts, their own budget, and their own needs.

If you can’t handle five seconds of silence after naming your fee, you are telling the client that you don’t truly believe you are worth it.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗲𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱.

In 2026, learn to be comfortable in the quiet. Silence isn’t a sign that the deal is dying—it’s a sign that the other person is actually thinking.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝗴𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹.