Speak to Lead

State of the Union Review-Part II: Throat Lozenge or Chewing Gum-Pelosi’s Dilemma

On camera for nearly an hour with millions of people watching and nothing to say-welcome to the world of Vice President Cheney and House Speaker (but on this occasion House Listener) Nancy Pelosi. Put yourself in their shoes. You are sitting behind the president. He is the main feature. But you are constantly visible in the camera shot. What should you be doing?

Many of us face the same situation, although in much lower-profile circumstances, when we are seated at a head table or on the platform while someone else speaks, or even in a meeting when we are seated near the speaker. What’s the protocol?

Except in those posturing situations where you are strategically nodding, shaking the head, or rolling the eyes in response, your focus should be on the speaker. First, it’s the considerate thing to do. Second, if someone in the audience looks away from the speaker and sees you, his or her attention will be directed to whatever you are focused on.

So how did the Veep and the Speaker do? Mrs. Pelosi has a very pleasant neutral expression and for the most part kept her attention on the president. Early in the speech, however, she started pursing her lips and moving her lower jaw. “Chewing gum,” was my first reaction. But the movement was not consistent or constant enough. “Repositioning a throat lozenge or breath mint,” was my second guess. I was about to settle on that as “my final answer” when the Speaker began sucking in the cheeks.

Ah ha! The I’ve-got-something-stuck-between-my-teeth, and it’s driving be crazy, response. With millions of people watching, picking the teeth is not an option. That leaves trying to suck the offending morsel out. In time the facial motions stopped. I presume the internal flossing worked; the motions did not recur. Lesson: Be careful what you eat before a public appearance, especially on television.

The vice president seemed more interested in seeing what else was going on than in focusing on the speech. In fact at one point he looked past the president directly into the camera. I though he was ready to give his own speech.  Perhaps he had sat through too many rehearsals.

State of the Union Review-Part I: Snow's Snow Job

Well, so much for Tony Snow's assurance that this years address would be shorter. It lasted 50 minutes, the norm for President Bush's other State of the Union speeches. Maybe Snow's comments were wishful thinking. Or perhaps the outlines he saw did indicate a shorter running time. Sometimes speeches expand between original version and delivery.

The classic case of this was Bill Clinton's speech at the 1988 Democratic Convention, a tedious 32-minute address "that has gone down in the books as the worst nominating speech in recent memory." (Bill Schneider and Keating Holland/CNN) When Clinton finished his final rehearsal, the speech was under 12 minutes. Amazing how many ideas pop up at the last minute. (Clinton later said of the speech, "It wasn't my finest hour. It wasn't even my finest hour and a half." )

State of the Union Address—Long Is Out, Short Is In; or Maybe Jefferson Had It Right

Late last week, Tony Snow, President Bush’s spokesperson, let us know that tonight’s State of the Union address abandons the long-running tradition of the hour-long speech. Why? Because as Snow said, “We want people to watch.”

Snow has provided a reality check to White House communication. Audiences want shorter presentations. In general, if you are speaking for over ten minutes, you need humor and other forms of interactivity to hold your listeners.

Just because the president’s speech will be shorter, of course, doesn’t mean we’ll see much of an increase in viewers. I suspect most Americans wouldn’t tune in if the speech were only five minutes long. And after all, why should they? We already know what the president is going to say. But the concept of shorter is certainly sound.

Perhaps Thomas Jefferson had the right idea. Realizing that the Constitution did not require the president to speak to the Congress, Jefferson wrote his report and sent it to the Congress. The 24 presidents who followed Jefferson did the same. The country did just fine. 

For further history--including recent presidents who chose not to speak to Congress--and for the texts of State of the Union messages, click here. 

Sound Bites: Giving Numbers Impact Follow Up

In my original Giving Numbers Impact post of January 03, 2007, I cited a reference saying that airlines annually throw out enough "newspapers to fill a football field at a depth of 230 feet." I pointed out that the comparison wasn't very helpful because although most Americans know the size of a football field, they have no idea how high 230 feet is. So I asked if anyone knew how tall an NFL stadium is.

Well, trivia friends, we now have the answer. My friend Brad Bryan talked with one of the firms that builds NFL stadiums. The highest point, set by the NFL, is 225 feet measured from the field. There can be a sloping down on the sides. That means, if the disposed of newspapers actually were put on a football field, they would be 5 feet higher than the highest point of the stadium and several more feet higher than the sides. That's a much better visual image than just saying 230 feet.

It's an even better visual seeing a wind blow through the stadium, sending the newspapers raining down on the fans, the parking lot, city streets, neighborhood houses and litter-free parks...what a mess. It's almost enough to get me to cancel my daily paper delivery and switch to online editions. (But it's hard to do the crossword puzzle online while eating breakfast.)

Off the Record? Yeah Right!

I've long believed that "off the record" is a game you should play only if you are an experienced news source and know the reporter interviewing you. Even then, you're better off not saying anything you wouldn't mind seeing made public.

But if you are tempted to go off the record or on deep background, take a look at the media's playbook. In a recent post on his blog, PR/PA Ideas to Use, my friend Ernie Landante provides a link to the "Standards and Practices" Associated Press reporters are to follow, as well as his own approach when going off the record. (Ernie is an experienced news source, but notice how careful he is.)

Media Training Webinar Thursday

PRNews is presenting a Media Training Webinar: How to Present Yourself & Key Executives to the Media this Thursday, January 11 from 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. ET.

Christy Phillips (VP & Communications Manager, Wachovia Corporation), David Kalson (Exec Managing Director, RF/Binder Partners, and I will show you how to:

• Take control of your media interviews
• Handle sensitive issues during an interview
• Conduct interviews via new technology, ie podcasts, videocasts, etc.
• Understand how to respond effectively to bloggers and other consumer generated media exposure
• Field difficult questions and bridge to positive answers
• Avoid misquotes
• Respond to crises effectively
• Become a reliable source for reporters
• Map your messages
• Develop quotable messages and sound bites
• Appropriately decline to answer certain types of questions, i.e., proprietary, classified information, hypothetical, litigation and competitive questions.
• Media train for various scenarios, i.e., press conferences, on-air vs. print, etc

For further information and to register ($297 per site), (sorry, too late)

Cicero's 3 Types of Orators

Okay! I know a lot of you were surprised that I missed celebrating Marcus Tullius Cicero’s 2113th birthday last week (January 3rd or 6th depending on which source you believe.). How could I overlook the greatest orator of ancient Rome?

Well, I hadn’t. It’s hard for me, as a speaker myself, to forget that Cicero’s career ended with his severed head and one hand being placed on the lectern where he had delivered many of his orations. It seems in Cicero’s case, his enemy, Marc Antony, wasn’t content with “lend me your ears.”

But while Ciceroing around the web, I discovered a

Sound Bites: Giving Numbers Impact

Unless you are talking to people who are into numbers, your challenge as a speaker is to find a way to imbue the numbers with meaning. The following paragraph is from an article by Sean Lengell titled, BWI airport leads use-it-again trend. (The Washington Times, December 30, 2006, A-1) It uses three numbers with varying success.

Airlines nationally discard enough aluminum cans every year to build 58 Boeing 747 jets, the [National Resources Defense Council] says. They also throw out more than 9,000 tons of plastic annually and enough newspapers to fill a football field at a depth of 230 feet.

Let’s look at what works, what almost works and what doesn't.

1. 58 Boeing 747 jets. Super! It takes whatever the actual number is and transforms it into a visual image. I can see a 747. I know what it is like and I can comprehend 58 of them. I can also go a step further and think about the soda cans on the airplane being made into an airplane.
2. 9,000 tons of plastic. Boring. I get the idea it must be a lot, but it doesn’t translate into any memorable image.
3. fill a football field at a depth of 230 feet. Close, but no cigar. I can visualize a football field. But how high is 230 feet? I know it’s a lot higher than the goal posts, but beyond that I’d have to work to even guess intelligently, and audiences won’t do the work. One solution is to convert the 230 feet into a comparison, e.g., what level of seats would the pile reach to? (BTW-how tall is a typical NFL stadium?)

Lesson: Use numbers sparingly, and convert them into visual images for greatest impact and understanding.

Defuse Hostility, Bond with the Audience: An Example from President Gerald Ford

In March 1975, President Ford headed to the University of Notre Dame to deliver a speech on world hunger. With his pardoning of Richard Nixon still highly unpopular, especially on college campuses, aides were concerned students might demonstrate or otherwise disrupt his speech.

To defuse any potential hostility, Ford’s director of speechwriters, Bob Orben, set out to find some Notre Dame insider joke he could use to let the students see Ford as a down-to-earth guy, someone who could understand and connect to the students.

To succeed Orben knew he needed to find out

New Resolutions or Constant Values?

At this time of making new--or recycling old--resolutions, would be a good time to step back and consider the values that underlie those resolutions.

At the memorial service for Martha (see December 23, 2006 post), a speaker's comments inspired me to read Standing for Something by Gordon B. Hinckley (with a foreword by Mike Wallace). Written in 2000, the book sets forth 10 Virtues for modern leadership success. Here are the 10, including some additional comments by Hinckley.

Love: the only force that can erase the differences between people or bridge the chasms of bitterness.
Honesty.
Morality. Both experience and divine wisdom dictate that moral virtue and cleanliness pave the way that leads to strength of character, peace of mind and heart, and happiness in life.
Civility. Civility carries with it the essence of courtesy, politeness, and consideration of others.
Learning. No matter how old we become, we can…grow and progress and improve.
Forgiveness & Mercy. Are there virtues more in need of application in our day, a time marked by litigious proceedings and heated exchanges, than those of forgiving, forgetting, and extending mercy to those who may have wronged us or let us down?
Thrift & Industry.
Gratitude. Gratitude is the beginning of civility, of decency and goodness, of a recognition that we cannot afford to be arrogant. We should walk with the knowledge that we will need help every step of the way.
Optimism in the face of cynicism. My plea is that we stop seeking out the storms and enjoy the sunlight…that we look a little deeper for the good, that we still our voices of insult and sarcasm, that we more generously compliment and endorse virtue and effort.
Faith. Great causes were never brought to success by vacillating leaders. Faith has always been, and always must be, at the root of any meaningful practice and endeavor.

Make it a Great 2007!