Rescue me

If you ever find yourself the object of unwanted, unexpected attention from reporters or photographers, the most important thing to do is walk. Don’t run. If you run, they will run after you, and if you are on public property, they are allowed to do that. If you stand still, they may surround you, while shouting questions at you. Managing a ‘scrum’ is a skill not easily acquired while you’re standing in the middle of one. 

The fire inside

Why are you giving this presentation or making this media appearance? Do you have something you burn to say? If not, you’d better come up with some other good reason, if you want your audience to believe what you say or take the action you’re suggesting (and “some other good reason” has to go farther than: “my boss, my fans, my advisors, my clients, my members say I have to” or “I'm trying to make a buck ...” ). Motivate yourself!

We have all the time in the world

Good interviewers know how to use silence. If they hear an answer that suggests there may be more that could be said, might be said, or should be said, sometimes they will just wait. One of the best lessons I was given, when I was beginning to work as a broadcast journalist, was “don’t be afraid of ‘dead air’ .” Anyone can use the same technique: just stop talking, listen as intently as you are able, and wait to see what the interviewer will say or do next.

It's too late to turn back now

Watch out for the trap – the series of questions that back you into a corner. The skill you are trying to develop here is the ability to think three or four questions ahead – anticipating where the interviewer is going – without looking as though you are picking your way through a carnival fun-house, with obstacles and monsters waiting around every corner.

You get what you give

Check out your own responses to your presentation or to the answers you are giving to questions. If you are bored with your material, or skeptical about your own answers, so will your audience be. Plan to be more enthusiastic or generous in your next presentation or interview, and watch for a difference in the response you get.

Say what you need to say

Have you been in the situation where you felt blind-sided by a question you had not anticipated? Even worse, perhaps it was a question for which you really didn't have a response because there just wasn't one that would satisfy the questioner.
Answer the question you wish you had been asked, while staying in the same general subject area. Avoid any tendency to be defensive, and don't repeat a negative question.

It's Alright

If you don't know the answer to a question, it is completely acceptable to say so. Build relationships by offering to find out the answer and email it to the questioner and anyone else who is interested.