Hey! Media coaching is nothing to be ashamed of
Andrew Ross Sorkin, of the New York Times, had one of those fly on the wall moments recently. While waiting at the Zurich Airport, he overheard a Fortune 50 chief executive getting pointers from a woman who was coaching him on how to talk to the media while at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Needless to say, the exec comes across as a hapless twit.
I have no idea who the guy is (mercifully, the reporter didn't cough up the name), but I give him credit for trying. In my years as a radio broadcaster, I interviewed many business people - and most of them were awful. Some were too wordy, many talked as if the whole world understood all the cliches and jargon of their industry, and more than a few appeared to be on life-support they were so lacking in enthusiasm. In my seven years here at Schwartz, I've done media coaching sessions with hundreds of executives, from start-ups to publicly traded companies. In almost every session, the question that takes the most time is "who are you and what do you do?" Distilling a corporate story into concise and compelling messages is not as easy as it seems. It takes work. The executive must be willing to practice and accept criticism on a continuing basis.
But aren't people fed up with executives and politicians "spinning" stories? Yes, of course. But there's a huge difference between spinning, which involves making things seem different than they really are, and delivering one's message in an honest and captivating manner.
It's easy for those of us sitting in the cheap seats to poke fun at folks in the public eye and say, "any fool can do what they're doing." It reminds me of the dopes at Fenway Park who seem to believe they could do a better job managing the Red Sox than Terry Francona. Wrong! Everything in life (sorry to wax philosophic) requires practice and dedication - and that includes message delivery. I hope the exec kicked butt at Davos.
Posted by John Moran on January 25, 2007 at 5:00 PM
