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As
I watched with the rest of America as this unbelieveable tragedy unfolded before
our eyes, I paid careful attention to the TV anchor people in the studio, and
interviewers out close to Ground Zero. Some interesting observations about how
people communicate under pressure. First,
I must say that it probably isn't fair for me, or anyone, to sit in a safe
office and critique someone's communication performance while one of the biggest
tragedies ever is unfolding over his or her shoulder. With that said, I want to
point out some of the goofy questions that some journalists asked. Minutes
after the second tower collapsed, a man in a business suit, covered head-to-toe
in dust and ash, looking like a walking ghost, was limping from the scene. He
was almost tackled by an newsperson from one of the cable networks. Visibly
shaken, wide-eyed and staring off into the distance, he told the interviewer he
was nearly hit by a hunk of metal the size of a telephone pole, and thought a
person standing next to him was crushed by a car-sized piece of concrete. The
reporter asked, "Were you scared?" He
followed that question with the equally brilliant, "Was it loud?" Minutes
later another reporter stopped a firefighter running to the scene. (Again, this
is moments after the second tower fell.) She asked him, "Do you think there
will be any loss of life?" And
the anchor people in the studios weren't immune to the stupid question syndrome.
Peter
Jennings of ABC interviewed the CEO of Bank of America. Peter first stated that
when the buildings collapsed there was a shower of paper and documents coming
down like a snowstorm. Then he said to the CEO, "What happened to your
documents in the building?" I
about fell off my chair. I don't recall the CEO's specific answer which was very
diplomatic, although I wouldn't have blamed him for saying, "Whaddya THINK
happened to our documents, genius?" A
journalist that I admire as being on the ball, normally, is Tony Snow from Fox.
He let one slip as well. Speaking to Colin Powell the day after the attack, he
asked, "Can you tell the American people, without a doubt, that the attacks
are over?" Powell
squinted, raised an eyebrow, and was probably thinking that was the stupidest
question he had ever heard in his life, but calmly said something like he hopes
that they are over , but there is no possible way of knowing that for sure. For
the most part, the TV people did a great job, given the circumstances. And there
were some very fine performances. Matt
Lauer of the NBC's Today Show interviewed the mother of one of the men who
likely overpowered the terrorists on the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. He
asked her to discuss the phone conversation she had with her son. She mentioned
how she had "heard some commotion" in the background during their
call, and then continued talking. Lauer let her finish, then said, "You
said you heard some commotion. Can you describe that for me?" She
went on to reveal more information in even greater detail. Lauer
also used questions such as, "Please tell me what happened when ..." "Can
you go into detail about ...?" Each
time, like peeling away the skin of an onion, he was able to dig deeper in the
story. The Tie-In To Sales
Although
I question the sanity of a newsperson who runs into debris from a falling
building to get an interview or shoot some tape, I can understand how inane
questions slip out in that type of tense environment. I can't count the number
of times I've sounded like a babbling Elmer Fudd when questioning on a simple
sales call. So
what's the key to preventing that, and sounding like the smooth, polished
professionals that we are? Preparation and Practice
It's
easy to read questions in a training manual, book, or email newsletter. It's
better to write them down in your own words. It's even better to practice them
in your mind. But nothing beats saying them out loud, with another person taking
the role of the prospect or customer. That's how we can at least simulate the
environment we face on the phone. Here's
a simple exercise that yields great results and confidence. 1.
Brainstorm for the toughest questions and objections you hear. Especially the
ones you hope you never get. 2.
Write down well-thought-out answers for them. (Remember, write as you speak.) 3.
Take it to the next level and think about the possible next questions they might
ask, or statements they could make in response. Be the devil's advocate and
prepare for the worst. 4.
Continue the process. It will look like a computer flow chart or org chart for a
company. 5.
Study the questions and get comfortable saying them. 6.
Finally, get someone to role play the scenario with you. Don't give them your
materials. Let them come up with their own responses and follow-up questions.
This way, you might come up with some you didn't initially think of. To
even further simulate tense environments, instruct your partner to be
adversarial or combative. Just like real life at times. Make
this a part of your practice routine and I know, regardless of how good you are
right now, you'll improve your communication and questioning skills and always
sound smooth and prepared in any situation. |
