When it comes to giving great answers to tough questions under pressure in the spotlight, there are two things you can do to make sure you perform at your best.
The first is to ensure that you’ve been thoroughly tested out beforehand.
The second is to do whatever practice sessions you need in advance to get yourself fully ready for doing it for real.
Both the test-out and the practices happen within communication-boosting sessions run by Michael Dodd Communications.
I came to appreciate the benefit of both on the rugged pathway to becoming an interviewer with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation – the ABC.
Getting into the ABC was a challenge for all of the hundreds of candidates in my year of entry.
The selection panels prided themselves on their toughness.
At one point during the process the journalists’ union representative at the ABC became concerned about a flood of feedback from distraught candidates about the overly aggressive stance by the panels.
One internal candidate – the personal assistant for one of the bosses on the selection team – had fled the rigorous job interview in tears.
An investigation was launched by the union to see if changes in approach were required.
But there was some merit in the tough approach by the selection panels.
Because the selectors were looking for people to conduct fierce and effective broadcast interviews with high-profile decision-makers from prime ministers down, they made sure successful candidates could pass a test-out interview.
Candidates who got through the initial selection rounds had to ask a series of questions in a recording studio at the ABC headquarters in Sydney.
This wasn’t a real interview.
It was more scary than that.
It was a mock interview where candidates had to ask questions of someone playing the part of a high-profile decision-maker.
And the selectors made sure the test-out wasn’t too easy.
The mock interview I had to pretend to do was with the then Prime Minister of New Zealand – the notoriously grumpy and combative Sir Robert “Piggy” Muldoon.
Sir Robert didn’t like the media.
And he particularly didn’t like the Australian media.
His anti-Australian credentials became infamous through a notorious comment he made about the embarrassingly high number of New Zealanders who chose to leave their country to come and live in Australia during his time in office.
When asked about this for real, Sir Robert claimed that the exodus of Kiwis to Australia raised the average IQ of both countries!
In order to ensure that my mock interview test-out was sufficiently difficult for me, the person playing the role of Sir Robert Muldoon in the ABC studio adopted an approach that was suitably anti-media, suitably anti-Australian and suitably grumpy.
His approach was to say close to nothing.
My approach was to keep asking question after question despite the lack of substantial answers.
Alas the historic recording of Dodd versus the pretend Piggy Muldoon character has probably been lost for all time.
I have now almost totally overcome the trauma of the experience of trying to interview a man who was aiming not to say anything other than complain about my questions.
Here’s a video I’ve recorded to shine more light on how this rigorous test-out process has since proven to be invaluable.
While my constant questioning failed to get much out of Piggy, my persistence seemed to impress the selection paneI.
So I made it inside the ABC ready to be trained to be a broadcast interviewer!
It was then time to do loads and loads of practice interviews – before being let loose on interviewing real politicians.
In these practice interviews, the more experienced ABC reporters would play act the role of a wide range of politicians.
I and my fellow newcomers benefited their ruthless post-interview critiques and tips on how to put interviewees under pressure to give us useful answers.
One of their key messages for we younger interviewers was to avoid getting into arguments with an interviewee.
The job of the person asking questions, we were repeatedly instructed, was to stick rigidly to questioning – and never to make statements or offer opinions while the recording proceeded.
In terms of keeping any interviewee under pressure, this technique of only asking questions and saying nothing else – proved insightful.
It’s a methodology that I still use when I’m doing test-out interviews on clients in communication-boosting sessions aimed at equipping them to give great answers to tough questions.
Doing a series of practise interviews ahead of doing real interviews works just as well for interviewers and interviewees alike.
Great Answers To Tough Questions sessions always includes plenty of practising time so that participants can improve the content, structure and delivery style of their answers with the help of the “Golden Formulae”.
There’s more on “Great Answers To Tough Questions” sessions – for large conference audiences and smaller groups of workshop participants here:
https://www.michaeldoddcommunications.com/give-great-answers-to-tough-questions/
Information about media interview response training sessions – for individuals and small groups – is at:
https://www.michaeldoddcommunications.com/media-master-classes/
In addition to the guidance above, it’s also vital to check out any relevant facts ahead of your big moments in the spotlight.
Astute readers of this column may recall me stressing the importance of truthfulness in giving great answers on big occasions – and all others!
The record on truthfulness of former U.S. President Donald Trump is one to be studied with horror, but never copied.
Spreading unsubstantiated fictitious stories about immigrants eating people’s dogs and cats in a particular American city damages your credibility.
But the importance of truthfulness has now been further underlined for Donald Trump.
Never one to be outdone, Mr Trump has been struggling to come to terms with the fact that Taylor Swift has expressed a preference for his opponent Kamala Harris in next month’s U.S. presidential election.
Mr Trump wanted to tell the world that the person he thought to be a “hot” female music superstar, Nicky Jam, was backing him.
Mr Trump, was right about the support.
Alas – as ever – Mr Trump hadn’t properly checked out who the support was coming from before he invited Nicky on stage at one of his rallies.
American YouTuber and political commentator, Brian Tyler Cohen, explains what happened next – with the proof – in this highly amusing video post:
If this picture below of Nicky Jam shows what a hot female music superstar looks like to Donald Trump, I suspect the photo might not look like one to you.
Ensuring that you know what you’re talking about ahead of your big moments is vital for presentations, media interviews and every other moment in the communications spotlight.
If this embarrassing Trump collision with real facts doesn’t convince you of the importance of preparing – and checking things out – in advance of your big moments, I’m afraid nothing will!