You Know it’s Coming

Back in the early 1990′s, I was working for a startup company. Things weren’t going well. Venture capital had dried up, as had our revenue due to quality problems in the field, and the president of the company was dipping into his personal accounts to help make payroll. I decided that it would be prudent to explore options elsewhere.

I landed an interview with a much larger company that made similar products. The interview was actually a series of interviews with the hiring manager, HR, and members of the team, with a group lunch sandwiched in the middle. The interviews in the morning went very well. I felt calm and confident as I strode into the restaurant for lunch. My guard was down. I felt like I was among friends.

When my food arrived, the fellow directly across the table from me pulled a copy of my resume out of his pocket. He carefully unfolded it on the table in front of him. He looked at me, then my resume, then back to me and said, “I see that you have worked for several companies. Would you please tell me how your choice of each position built into the next and contributed to your overall career plans?” The question hit me like a punch in the gut. I wasn’t ready.

I stumbled through a long answer interrupted frequently by his additional questions. I never got to eat my food. I didn’t get the job. I drove home from the interview kicking myself in the rear–a difficult feat while driving!

I should have Anticipated a question like the one that prevented me from both eating my lunch and landing the job. It was an interview, after all. I should have known that such a question could come up. I should have been ready.

This post is a continuation of a series on the topic of Impromptu Speaking. We’re in the middle of discussing a few dirty little secrets for successful impromptu speaking.

In these posts we have been or will be discussing these dirty little secrets:

• Use a head start (Done)
• Anticipate (This post)
• Practice (Coming soon)

This post’s Dirty Little Secret is that we often can anticipate the kinds of questions that might come our way. A little thought before going into the meeting or a little consideration before making that phone call can make all the difference.

Tony Jeary, in his book Life is a Series of Presentations, tells the story of a woman who dreamed of making a presentation to the Vice President of the company that employed her. She had what she believed was a wonderful idea and wanted to get his support. The problem was, she didn’t work directly for him and generally had no interactions with him. She assumed that she’d never have the chance and didn’t prepare. Then one day he went through the cafeteria line with her! Opportunity? Yes, but only if she was ready to take it. Unfortunately, the woman hadn’t anticipated. In nervousness, she silently finished her business and left the cafeteria. Opportunity lost.

The bottom line for us has two parts:

1. We can very often anticipate the kinds of questions that will come up during a meeting or interview. If we’re prepared to answer those kinds of questions, our impromptu delivery will be much more effective.
2. If there’s something we’re passionate about, we should be ready to talk about it with a moment’s notice. We never know when the opportunities are going to come, therefore we must be ready!

Speak Up!

On Your Mark…

A couple of years ago I attended a presentation training “boot camp” at work. Right off the bat the instructor challenged us by going around the room and asking us each to stand and deliver! He asked us to give a brief impromptu speech about ourselves to the class. Yikes! So soon?!!? Do we not get at least 15 minutes of class overview or something? Isn’t that a rule?!!? Immediately I began to sweat. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. My palms felt cold and clammy. You’d think I’d know an awful lot about the subject (me!), but my mind went blank. What was I going to say?

Fortunately, things really went my way that morning. By chance (or by destiny!) I had selected a front-row seat on the opposite side of the room from where the instructor started. Bottom line: I went last! Woo-hoo! That gave me a bit of time to think about what I was going to say. When it came to be my turn to speak, I came off polished and prepared. Why? Because I had a head start.

I don’t have statistics to back this up, but I believe that one of the Dirty Little Secrets of impromptu speaking opportunities is that the majority of them give us at least a little advance notice. Even a few minutes can give us enough of a head start to make a dramatic difference in the outcome, especially if we have memorized one of the patterns we’ve discussed in previous posts: Tell a Story, Past-Present-Future or Position-Action-Benefit (PAB).

Let’s also consider this: I should have known something like that was coming. It was a presentation class, after all. I should have anticipated that I’d be giving some sort of introduction. Isn’t this also the case with many of the meetings we attend? I believe that we can frequently anticipate that certain kinds of questions will be asked, certain kinds of information will need to be provided. Isn’t it true that we’re all going to meet someone who asks that terrifying question, “What do you do for a living?” Why not use the head start and prepare in advance? What are you going to say if that comes up?

Lest you get some idea in reading this blog that *I* have it all together, I must be honest: I mostly walk into these impromptu situations completely oblivious and unprepared. For all but the most talented among us, it takes deliberate, purposeful steps to prepare. I need to do a better job of this. I’ll bet most of us do, too.

Let’s take advantage of even the tiniest head starts to increase our effectiveness and Speak Up!