One of the secrets to giving great answers to tough questions is to make sure you convey an important powerful message along the way.
But it’s vital that your important powerful message is on the same topic as the question you’ve been asked.
If it’s not, you can rightly be held up to ridicule.
This is fine if you’re a comedian.
It’s not so great if you want your answer to be taken seriously.
You wouldn’t want your reply to end up in the jaws of a crocodile – as you will shortly see can really happen!
To give the point more teeth, this e-zine contains two examples of how to get it completely, magnificently and spectacularly wrong – in the hope that you will be inspired to get it right.
Being perfectly balanced, one example comes from the Northern Hemisphere and one from the Southern Hemisphere.
Both, coincidentally, are courtesy of conservative politicians talking about issues relating to homosexuality (it might take a Freudian psychologist to work out why).
The Southern Hemisphere example comes from Australia – of all places – and goes to show that EVEN in the enlightened country of my birth, not everyone is a perfect communicator.
It arrives courtesy of an infamous member of the Australian Parliament, who represents super-hot far northern Queensland where they often see the world differently from the rest of us.
It’s known in Australian political terms as the “Deep North” – mirroring in some ways America’s “Deep South”.
The politician’s name is Bob Katter – or, technically, Bob Katter Junior.
When I was a political correspondent in Canberra it was always a joy to interview Bob’s father, Bob Katter Senior, who was cut from the same North Queensland cloth…. or pineapple, perhaps.
Bob Katter Junior was an outspoken opponent of the proposal to allow same sex marriages in Australia – which has since been approved by the majority of voters in a referendum.
So the tough question for Bob Katter Junior relates to whether he’ll become more supportive of the gay community in the wake of the referendum result?
His answer involved a technique known as “bridging” where you verbally cross a metaphorical bridge between your initial response and your powerful message.
Get Your “Bridging” Right
I teach the delicate art of bridging – in individual sessions, in master classes and in conference keynotes – but I stress that I have never knowingly taught it to Bob Katter.
So don’t blame me for what you’re about to witness… I was 12,000 miles away when he said it!!!
In Bob Katter’s case his “bridging” goes from expressing an unprecedented new openness towards the activities of the gay community: “Let there be a thousand blossoms bloom,” he declares.
This is a statement which seems to surprise himself – but then he “bridges” incredibly badly.
His message abruptly diverts onto the important but completely irrelevant subject of Queensland crocodiles killing people.
This is one of Bob Katter’s personal concerns and campaigning issues.
He even has this cartoon of himself reflecting it on his website:
But in the context of the question on gay marriage, the answer is a bridge too far!
You can check it out here – as an Australian TV programme makes fun of the Bob Katter Junior reply:
Was This Bob Katter’s Mentor?
Perhaps Bob Katter Junior was inspired by British politician Lord Norman Tebbit.
Some years back, during the time of a British Labour Government, Lord Tebbit was asked a question concerning government social policy.
He then performed what the BBC Programme “Broadcasting House” called “The Tebbit Leap”.
This was because he “bridged” so far in his answer that he concluded on the irrelevant topic of homosexual British teachers (allegedly) teaching what he called “buggery” in the classrooms.
For weeks afterwards Broadcasting House then played further examples of “Tebbit Leaps” from other politicians who strayed way beyond the questions they were asked.
Alas this was so long ago that I can’t find any reference to it on the Internet.
But I am happy to declare that for me Bob Katter Junior has implemented the most impressively appalling “Tebbit Leap” I have ever seen.
If Tebbit Leaping were an Olympic sport, Australia would have won another gold medal.
If Bob Katter Junior gets in touch I am happy to send him a free copy of “Great Answers To Tough Questions At Work” which shows how to bridge properly and responsibly in great answers.
Everyone can read the first chapter free on-line here at: https://issuu.com/wiley_publishing/docs/great_answers_esampler
Adjust Your Answers To Different Personality Styles
I’m not exactly sure how to classify the personality style of Bob Katter Junior – as, along with his father, the two of them deserve a category of their own.
But you can learn the importance of adjusting your answers, on occasions, to suit the personal preferences of different personality types of your questioners in this interview produced by Grant Leboff from Sticky Marketing:
Other videos in the Leboff-Dodd series on giving great answers are here: http://www.stickymarketing.com/category/authors/michael-dodd/
You can learn the details of how to do impressively legitimate and effective “bridging” in Chapter 5 of Great Answers To Tough Questions At Work.
Details of where to get the book online are at: https://www.michaeldoddcommunications.com/great-answers-tough-questions-work/
Meanwhile please do not yourself commit any “Tebbit Leaps” – or as we should now call them “Katter Leaps”…
… because you don’t want to end up in the jaws of a crocodile.
And let’s look forward to the day when the Australian media asks Bob “Blooming Blossoms” Katter about what should be done regarding gay crocodiles.
Keep smiling – but never smile at a crocodile!