Chapter 10. The Role Model
During the 43 days of the 1991 Gulf War, General Norman Schwarzkopf, the commander-in-chief of Desert Storm, held only about half a dozen press conferences in the press room in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and each of those sessions was very, very brief. Despite such minimal exposure, “Stormin’ Norman,” as he was known, became an instant global celebrity. The reason he attracted such attention is that, in each of those sessions, broadcast live throughout the world, the general exhibited complete command and control in answering the journalists’ questions. In doing so, he served as a role model for every technique you’ve learned…and which you would do well to emulate.
A particular case in point is the press conference of February 24, 1991. After nearly a month of air bombardments, the coalition forces launched a massive ground offensive, and General Schwarzkopf appeared to describe the first day’s actions to the pool of reporters.
The general began the session by reading a brief opening statement that he concluded with the following words:
So far, the offensive is progressing with dramatic success. The troops are doing a great job. But I would not be honest with you if I didn’t remind you that this is in the very early stages, we are a little more than twelve hours into this offensive and the war is not over yet.
Then the general removed his eyeglasses and looked out at the sea of reporters and said,
That concludes my prepared comments and I am now ready to take a very few questions.
“A very few questions.” In fact, the entire Q&A session ran just two minutes and 48 seconds in real time, during which the general fielded 10 questions. The role model did what you must do in your sessions: Manage the time. Schwarzkopf started by setting the audience’s expectations, and so must you. When you open the floor to questions, you can say that you have no time for questions or that you have all the time in the world, but set the time expectations. General Schwarzkopf did, and then he proceeded to fulfill them. He continued his time management by counting down the last few questions toward the end.
But let’s start with first things first…when the general opened the floor, the first reporter asked:
Can you give us an idea of how long, based on what you know now, if things go according to plan, how long do you anticipate this thing is going to last and how do you account for the fact that the opposition has been so light so far?
A double question, “How long and why so light?” Two related questions. If you get multiple unrelated questions, pick only one, Buffer it, answer it, and then say, “You had another question.” Because the reporter’s questions were clearly related, the General fielded them both…in reverse order. The “why so light?” was first.
First of all I want to say that the opposition has probably been so light so far because of the excellent job that all of the forces have to date done in preparing the battlefield. With regard to your second question, it’s impossible to say how long it’s going to take…
“It’s impossible to say how long it’s going to take,” meaning that General Schwarzkopf had no intention of answering the other question about forecasting the length of the war. Instead, he said,
Let me put it this way. It’s going to take as long as it takes for the Iraqis to get out of Kuwait and the United Nations resolutions to be enforced.
“…the Iraqis to get out of Kuwait and United Nations resolutions to be enforced,” was General Schwarzkopf’s Point B, his Topspin.
If, after your business presentation, you are asked, “How long is it going to take until you release the next version of your product?” you should say, “It’s impossible to say how long it’s going to take.” That is the Buffer using the Roman Column, time, as well as the candid answer. When you’ve done that, you can roll into your Topspin. “…but I can tell you that when the next version is released, it will have the same high quality as all the other products in our powerful pipeline and produce the same rich benefits to our customers.” State your Point B and your audience’s WIIFY. Seize the opportunity.
General Schwarzkopf then recognized the next reporter, who asked:
There have been some reports that there has been an ongoing situation, but can you at least tell us whether we have any forces in Kuwait City? There have been reports of some paratroopers seen over Kuwait City, these reports by Kuwaiti residents.
The Roman Column in this question was about confidential strategic information the general could not possibly broadcast to a worldwide television audience that was sure to include informants for the opposition. In business, Q&A sessions often occur at conferences where competitors are very likely to be in the audience. No businessperson or solider has any obligation to reveal strategic information and should never do so. General Schwarzkopf asserted his position. He just said, “No.”
I’m not going to in any way discuss the location of any of the forces involved in the battle to date.
Without missing a beat, the general then turned to another reporter who asked:
General have any U.S. or allied troops encountered chemical or biological weapons?
“Chemical or biological weapons” are the key words in the question. The general rolled those key words into his answer as a Buffer.
We had some initial reports of chemical weapons, but those reports to date, as far as we’re concerned, have been bogus. There have been no reported chemical weapons used thus far.
Just like Colin Powell in Chapter 5, “Retake the Floor,” General Schwarzkopf used the key word technique as his Buffer. And just like Colin Powell, not once during the entire Q&A session did he use a Double Buffer such as, “You’d like to know if our troops encountered any chemical or biological weapons,” or a paraphrase such as, “Did our troops encounter any chemical or biological weapons?.” In each of the 10 questions he fielded, General Schwarzkopf Buffered only with the key words and rolled them into each of his answers. Remember that the key word Buffer allows no thinking time but, when you get it right, the rapidity of your response makes you appear sharp and in control.
The next reporter asked the General:
Would you say that things are going better than you expected at this stage or about on par or slightly worse?
Better, on par, or slightly worse? A multiple choice question with three options. Which do you think the general chose? Please note that, as in earlier chapters, the rest of this page is left blank for you to think about your answer.
So far we are delighted with the progress of the campaign.
He took the opportunity to Topspin to his Point B. He took the high ground.
This next question came from a professional reporter who…as someone in your audience is very likely to do…asked a convoluted question, made more so by a halting delivery.
With one exception…uh… the…uh… contact with the enemy was described… you say… as light. Can you provide any details at all…
General Schwarzkopf started to answer before the reporter even finished.
…about the exception?
Before you see the general’s answer, think. Specifically, what does she want to know? Please note that, as before, the rest of this page is left blank for you to think about your answer.
The reporter wanted the general to provide details of the heavy engagement. Here is his answer.
This afternoon about two hours ago, one of the Marine task forces was counterattacked with enemy armor. The Marines immediately brought their own artillery to bear, they also brought their anti-tank weapons to bear. We also brought our Air Forces to bear and the counterattack was very quickly repulsed and they retreated. I can’t tell you the exact number or loss of tanks…
“I can’t tell you the exact number or loss of tanks.” In other words, he did not give the reporter any of the details she wanted. His reply was entirely Topspin. “The Marines immediately brought their own artillery to bear; they also brought their anti-tank weapons to bear. We also brought our Air Forces to bear…” In essence, “we kicked their butts!”
…but there were several tanks that were lost in that particular battle.
About two more questions.
“About two more questions.” Now he started to count down and, as he did, his answers became shorter and shorter. He also refused to take follow-on questions, which is a privilege you do not have. The next reporter asked:
Has the resistance been light simply because the Iraqis are retreating, or are they simply not engaging you, or are they surrendering? What exactly are they doing?
The epitome of succinctness, General Schwarzkopf replied:
All of the above.
A reporter wearing eyeglasses asked:
You say the opposition is light. Is this because you have avoided a frontal confrontation with them, or are you going around, or over, and is that why there is little opposition?
General Schwarzkopf responded:
We will go around, over, through, on top, underneath, and any other way to get through.
The same reporter tried a follow-on question:
General have you gone through sir? Is that why it’s light?
Ignoring the man with eyeglasses, the general turned to another.
One more.
This journalist asked:
General have you encountered the Republican Guard yet?
Moving briskly, General Schwarzkopf responded:
Some.
This journalist also tried a follow-on question:
What kind of resistance have you gotten from that?
General Schwarzkopf also ignored this follow-on and turned to another reporter.
Alright last question.
The last question came from a man with a British accent.
General are you going to pursue the Iraqi soldiers into Iraq, or are you going to stop at the Kuwait/Iraq border?
General Schwarzkopf looked straight at the man and said:
I am not going to answer that. We are going to pursue them in any way it takes to get them out of Kuwait.
Then the general slapped his palm on the lectern, turned on his heel, and walked out, saying over his shoulder:
The reporter wearing eyeglasses called after him:
General, when will we see you again? Tomorrow at six? [10.1]
The general did not reply. He left his last words trailing in his wake, resonating throughout the press room, and out into millions of television sets around the globe, “We are going to pursue them in any way it takes to get them out of Kuwait,” his Point B, his Topspin.
General Schwarzkopf had a number of unique control factors working for him that you and most people in business, and in most walks in life, do not share. In his press conferences, the general was the solicited party, and his audiences were the solicitors. In your Q&A sessions, the shoe will be on the other foot: You will be the solicitor, and your audiences, with whom you are trying to do business, will be the solicited. Most of the general’s information fell under the cloak of tactical secrecy; most of your business information must be open and above board. The general had no need to give his media audience a single WIIFY; you have an obligation to give your audience as many WIIFYs as you can.
Nevertheless, General Schwarzkopf provided an excellent role model for all the techniques in this book:
• Manage the time
• Listen intently
• Identify the Roman Column in every question
• Buffer with the key word
• Answer succinctly
• Topspin, Topspin, Topspin
Complete Control
Figure 10.1 is a graphical representation of the dynamics of a conventional Q&A scenario. The first downward triangle in black indicates a challenging question, plunging at you like a dart to the heart. Most presenters, being results-driven, rush to provide an answer, parallel to the question, represented by the downward white triangle. These separate dynamics exert no control and add no value to the exchange.
Figure 10.1. Conventional Q&A dynamics.
To assert control in your Q&A exchange, you must listen for the Roman Column during the question with the “empty cup” concentration of a Zen master. Then you must intervene with the two upward grey triangles in Figure 10.2.
Figure 10.2. Controlled Q&A dynamics.
The first gray triangle is a Buffer composed of a paraphrase or key words to level the playing field, the equivalent of self-defense in the martial arts. The second gray triangle, which brackets the answer, is Topspin to your Point B and/or your audience’s WIIFY, the equivalent of an agile switch to the offensive in the martial arts. These upward thrusts add control dynamics to the exchange.
Between the two, you must provide an answer that is the positive Yang to balance the negative Yin in the issue of the challenge.
When most politicians respond to questions, they jump directly to the Topspin, conveniently skipping the answer. In one of the 2000 presidential debates, then Governor George W. Bush jumped to his Topspin with an insufficient answer to Lisa Kee’s question about his tax proposals. Skipping the answer appears evasive. Never skip the answer.
Earlier in that very same debate, however, the governor made a strong Topspin after responding to Al Gore’s challenge. A little more than a year later, in a press conference at a high school in Crawford, Texas, as president, George W. Bush directly answered a question about U.S./Soviet relations and then added his Topspin. A little more than a year and a half after that, in his press conference on the White House lawn, he directly answered a question about his prospects for reelection and then moved on to his Topspin. A year after that and throughout his campaign for reelection, including all his debates, he resolutely stuck to his policy decisions in his answers and stayed on message with his Topspin.
When most businesspeople respond to questions, in their eagerness to provide an effect to a cause, they jump directly to the answer, end the exchange, and then promptly move on to the next question. In the process, they bypass the opportunity to Topspin. They offer no Point B and no WIIFY. They make no call to action and give the audience no reason to act. Such behavior exerts zero control.
The winning sequence is
• Question
• Buffer
• Answer with supporting evidence
• Topspin
When you learn all the steps with the discipline of a samurai warrior and apply them with the controlled artistry of a symphony conductor, you combine the up and down dynamics of the triangles in Figure 10.2 and shift their direction…in your favor. You take complete control.
Asserting all these control techniques is no easy matter, for they require an entirely new set of skills that are counterintuitive to the reflexive Fight or Flight behavior triggered when you step into the line of fire. The challenge to achieve control is then doubled: Overcome the instincts, and learn the new skills. It is a task well worth the effort, for the outcome is also doubled: Survive and thrive without fighting.
P.S. The last sentence in this book is a WIIFY, my Topspin to you. Good luck!