Appear professionally in the media! (3)

The 5 biggest traps in an interview

FIT FOR YOUR MEDIA PRESENCE

Many pitfalls and traps lurk in the interview. It's all too easy to fall into it, which is understandable – because after all, you're leaving your ancestral terrain. But if you know the traps, you have a big advantage: you can recognize them and avoid them skillfully.

1. RESPONSE COMPULSION

“Sind Sie mit Ihrem Job zufrieden?”– Surely you have experienced this phenomenon many times: Every cleverly asked question reflexively sets the course in the brain towards the answer. This temptation to think in a direction set by the questioner is one of the biggest traps in the interview.

“Hätte der Unfall vermieden werden können?” Journalisten stellen bevorzugt geschlossene Fragen. Diese Frageform wirkt ganz besonders “hypnotisch” (zwingend), bringt Sie im Interview aber schnell in ein Dilemma. Denn meist ist weder ein “Ja” noch ein “Nein” ganz richtig.

Alternatives: Correcting the question

• They repeat the question in a slightly modified form and supplement it with additional information, such as this: “Wenn Sie fragen, ob es möglich ist, bei 120.000 Transaktionen pro Jahr Fehler völlig auszuschliessen, sage ich: Nein. Gerade deshalb investiert das Unternehmen jährlich 4 Mio. Euro in das Thema Sicherheit.”

2. JUSTIFICATION PRESSURE

Especially in crisis communication, pressure is often built up to justify oneself: “Wie konnte so etwas passieren? Haben Sie nicht alle Vorkehrungen getroffen?”How obvious it is now to justify oneself!

Alternatives: Telling stories from practice

• Briefly share a personal experience related to the question, such as: “Noch vor zwei Tagen war ich im Kraftwerk und habe mit dem Verunglückten gesprochen …”

Practical tip
In the course of your preparation, think about what figures, data and facts do I want to have ready? What tricky questions do I have to be prepared for? Which personal experiences fit in with this? This way, you always have possible answers at hand.

3. TOO TECHNICAL WORDING

Your listeners don't have your expertise. It is a typical expert mistake not to speak in the language of the audience, but in specialist jargon.

• Terms: If it is absolutely necessary to use them, explain immediately afterwards what is meant by them. Example: “Die Emission – das sind die Gase, die beim Verbrennen frei werden – diese Emission überprüfen wir täglich um sechs Uhr früh!”
• Complex interrelationships: Look for everyday, easy-to-understand comparisons and analogies from the audience's living environment: “Das ist, als würden Sie den Wasserhahn Ihrer Badewanne aufdrehen und vergessen, vorher den Stöpsel zu schließen…!”

4. TOO MANY DETAILS

Keep it short and simple! As an expert, you know the background and details. However, an interview is not a technical lecture. Her listeners want to know the most important key points quickly. Therefore, focus on those aspects that provide answers to your audience's most burning questions. This will help you avoid being interrupted by the interviewer even before you've uttered a target sentence.

Practical tip
Once you feel like you're starting to get lost in details, stop and formulate a question that brings you back to the most important point, such as: “Was genau aber war der Auslöser?”Then answer your own question briefly.

5. EMOLLIENT OF LANGUAGE

Is your language clear and concrete? Plasticizers often creep in and reduce their effect. Also pay attention to the undesirable linguistic habits in everyday life.

• Relativization and filler words: Actually, somehow, so to speak, or something.
• Signs of uncertainty: yes yes, right, practical, quasi
• Claimed credibility that is not credible: honest, genuine, serious
• Arrogance: “Ich möchte hierzu grundsätzlich bemerken…”, “Ich als Vorsitzender…”, “Das haben Sie jetzt hervorragend formuliert”, “Sie sollten einmal das Statut lesen…”
• Blur: “Ich würde meinen…”

Practical tip
Ask a colleague to pay attention to your language when presenting. Get feedback specifically on filler words and plasticizers.

I look forward to your feedback. Or do you have a question?
Write to me! Until the next online tip, I wish you good luck and much success!

You
Arno Fischbacher