When Tough Questions Make You Feel Trapped
One of the biggest challenges for clients I’ve consulted is dealing with tough reporter or shareholder questions — especially during a crisis. In my early days as an investigative reporter, I developed my skill to ask tough, heavily researched questions. And I called on that experience when preparing executives and politicians for those questions — especially when trying to manage a crisis.
We would go through drills, which several of my clients found exhausting yet valuable. Republicans on some days, Democrats on others. I’d question them about an issue, then ask follow-up questions, trying to reveal problems.
From Fumbling to Convincing
At first, most would fumble through answers. We went through second and thirds rounds. They would improve their answers as they applied my recommendations.
They were driven to learn how to defend themselves when they had little wiggle room. They wanted to use the most persuasive communication tools. All things being equal, that’s what it takes to win.
One of the most obvious examples on the national political stage is how a former Secretary of State who’s running for President handled a crisis that resulted in the deaths of several Americans including the ambassador.
What can you learn from how Hillary Clinton is handling the tough questions? If you set aside your political position, you might appreciate she was masterful. True, she benefitted from lots of consulting. And lots of practice.
When Tough Questions Make You Feel Trapped: Takeaways
- Shift what appears to be the bad decisions to others. See how Hillary Clinton makes the shift in the interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper.
- Related to that, try to avoid taking responsibility. In short, the “professionals on my team” recommended the approach.
- Take the pressure off you by referring to your opponents, your competitors, or simply people who don’t like you. The catch phrase the other guys are playing “politics.” Also, they mount a “conspiracy.”
- If you must admit anything, use passive expressions. Example: “Mistakes were made.” That avoids the explicit: “It was my decision, and I regret we lost the lives of our Ambassador and others on his team.”
- Enlist or hope for support from influential people. For all practical purposes, President Obama cleared Hillary Clinton in a major interview on 60 Minutes. He did stick his neck out because the FBI investigation had not been completed. But it’s great getting support from high places or even your opponents. Did you catch Bernie Sander’s comments.
- Don’t over do it. If you accuse others, for example, of waging a War on Women making you a victim, you need to ask yourself: Is that really believable?
- Try to avoid coming across as a victim. Leaders are rarely victims. They’re leaders.
Caveat
These recommendations are based on my consulting experience related to reputation management — building personal brands. If civil or criminal allegations are involved, consult an attorney. For reputation management, contact me at bob@kaplitz.tv.
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