It was a merger made in heaven.

The chief executives liked each other. The first contacts went fine. The big weekend meeting, held in the suite of a four-star hotel to keep gossip under wraps, began extremely well. Although the two teams of executives convened there in secret had much to examine, as they compared notes and numbers, the synergies under discussion really did seem to make sense. These two companies belonged together. Not only that, but were the two to merge, everybody in the room would stand to make a lot of money.

But by Sunday afternoon the deal was off and everyone went home to the status quo. What happened? As the weekend wore on, one of the key executives began to talk. First he summarized the background and theoretical advantages of the deal; next he summarized his team's findings and opionions; then he summraized the other team's. He was enthusiastic, spot-on, brilliant, funny, and trenchant, and he absolutely killed the deal.