During my time as a reporter, I could always recognize “the look.” That magic cocktail of nerves, uncertainty, and downright panic in the interviewee.

“The look” meant that whoever I was interviewing had no idea what to say next. That doesn’t mean they didn’t keep talking. Oh my, did they usually keep talking. But no longer was the speaker on message or, sometimes, even making much sense.

Intentionally or not, I had thrown them a curveball question and, like Pedro Cerrano in Major League, they simply could not hit the curve. (Where are my Gen X and Millennial readers?)

The first strategy to handling curveball questions is to anticipate and be prepared. We discuss this in our HC Four Questions to Ask When Building Powerful Messages blog.

That said, can we predict every single curveball question before it comes? No. Definitely not.

What we can do is prepare as best as possible, while relying on HC’s three-step proven strategy for managing difficult questions and hitting the curve when all else fails.

Step 1: Acknowledge

The first step to hitting the curveball is to acknowledge the situation you find yourself in. Sometimes that means acknowledging in your head that a curveball has been thrown your way, while other times you make that acknowledgement out loud.

Acknowledging a curveball in your head involves committing to not fearing the silence. Take a moment to collect your thoughts while maintaining a steady, neutral, or thoughtful facial expression as best as possible. Think through whether you want to answer the question directly or if it’s better to chart a different course in your response. Then proceed.

Other times, we’ll acknowledge the curveball out loud. This needs to be done very carefully, so you do not accidentally accept the negative or false premise of the question. Instead, we can focus on a spoken acknowledgement of the underlying concern behind the question in a way that doesn’t cede any ground or overcommit to legitimizing the scope or direction of that concern.

For example, an energy company spokesperson might be asked about the safety of high-voltage power lines being installed near a playground. The implication of the question might be that those lines are unsafe. The spokesperson might acknowledge the curveball by saying at the start something along the lines of, “The safety of our community members is our organization’s top concern.” This addresses the underlying issue and concern, without implying that there is an actual risk.

Step 2: Pivot

Now it’s time to move on from the curveball’s core, but we cannot do that without a transition. It’s time to pivot.

Here’s my favorite pivot phrase: “What I can tell you is…”

Left silent is the first half of that sentence, which is something to the effect of “I’m not touching that one, but…” Instead, we just say “what I can tell you is” and move on to the redirection.

Step 3: Redirect

Our third step – redirect – helps you return to solid footing and, potentially, transition the interview back to your desired messaging.

After you pivot with either the phrase I shared above or a custom line for that moment, share a big picture line or two that’s central to what you’ve come to discuss. Ideally, you will find a way to connect at least a light thread to the main driver of the question, but sometimes that’s not possible.

Are there exceptions to this rule? Absolutely.

Certain topics are extremely sensitive or have potential legal consequences. In those cases, redirecting to core messaging can feel callous, insensitive, and expose your organization to liability. You will need to make a case-by-case judgment call in those situations.

Generally speaking, when you find yourself in a situation where you’re staring down at a curveball question and do not know what to say, try out this three-step approach and swing away.

With practice, this HC Strategy can help you avoid ever showing a reporter “the look.”

Enjoying these HC strategies? Then you’d love our Henrich Communications media training and communications coaching offerings! Contact us today to set up your complimentary consultation.