Media Training and Presentation Training Guru TJ Walker Gives Insights On Public Speaking and Media

TJ’s Insights

March 22, 2005

New Books, TJ Walker’s “Media Training A-Z”
http://www.mediatrainingworldwide.com/mediatrainingaz.html
“Presentation Training A-Z” http://www.mediatrainingworldwide.com/presentaz.html

Aggressive Vs. Pushy

What do you do if you are a guest on a TV or radio news program and the other guest or guests are hogging all of the airtime?

For starters, remember, this is no time to be passive. Air time is valuable and you are going to have to fight for yours. Do not simply wait to be called upon by the host or moderator.

Next, listen strategically. When the host or guest says something you can react to and add to, do so instantly. You aren’t in First Grade and you don’t have to raise your hand and wait to be called on by the teacher.

Initially, don’t talk over the other guests. Attempt to make a point, but cede the floor is someone else starts talking. But if you give up the floor several times and the other guests aren’t taking turns, it is time to be more aggressive. The next time you start to talk at the same time the other talkative guests start, don’t stop talking. Just keep talking. The host or moderator will be forced to ask only one person to speak. At some point you will get your share.

Here is the key: don’t try to shout out your other guests. You don’t have to raise your voice to be heard. Simply talk in a conversational manner. Your voice will cross out the other guest’s voice if you are both talking at the same time. The other guest will finally get the point that he or she must share some of the air time.

You don’t want to be an air hog yourself, and you should not count every second to see if you got exactly your fair share. But you don’t want to be 15 minutes through a 20 minute TV interview segment and realize that you’ve spoken only twice for a total of 50 seconds and you haven’t talked at all in the last ten minutes. Meanwhile the other guest has pontificated endlessly on subjects where you are an acknowledged expert.

If you are annoyed at the other guests stealing your time, never show it. Always smile and act good-natured. When attempting to grab the attention of the host, especially if you are in different locations as in the case of phone radio interviews or satellite TV interviews, call out to the host by name. The host will feel more obligated to call on you part of the time.

Finally, never complain during the program that you aren’t getting enough time to make your points. Nobody likes a crybaby.

If you aren’t getting enough air time when you are part of a group interview, remember, you have no one to blame but yourself. Be assertive, but be polite!

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Author of Media Training A-Z
& Presentation Training A-Z

TJ Walker
Media Training Worldwide
212-764-4955

Media Training Worldwide provides more media and presentation training workshops and seminars (54 separate courses) than any other company in the world. Media Training Worldwide also publishes more than 100 presentation training books, DVDs, CDs, and other information products and is the largest presentation/media training publisher in the world. For a product catalog or more information on training services call 800-755-7220 or visit http://mediatrainingworldwide.com/mediatrainingcatalogapril2004.pdf.

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