TJ’s Insights

Tom Friedman, the New York Times columnist, is a great journalist, a wonderful author and a highly experienced TV pundit. But even media pros make minor blunders from time to time. While appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Friedman was wearing a sports coat with metal buttons. Now there is nothing wrong with metal buttons, but because Friedman was sitting at a table, he was clanking his buttons loudly on the table top at the conclusion of every answer.

You have the best of intentions. You give speech after speech using strong visuals, compelling examples and riveting stories to make your points come alive. But then, slowly, your speaking skills start to dissolve. The next thing you know, you’ve become a boring hack, just like everyone else.

How did it happen?

Here is the usual suspect. You are supposed to speak at a conference in 3 weeks. The conference coordinator calls your office urgently and says “Can you email your presentation today? We promised all of the attendees that we would send them in advance!”