In the Line of Fire : How to Handle Tough Questions...When It Counts: How to Handle Tough Questions ...When It Counts

This book is a very informative read for anyone who expects to be in a leadership role at anytime in their life. It is not just for the workplace, or business community. It is a great reference for individuals that may have to lead any kind of team, anyone appointed as a spokesperson for a group, a role as a parent, guardian, or in preparation for interviews. At some point all of us will be thrusted into "the line of fire" and presented with tough questions. This handy guide will be an invaluable part of your professional development library, and essential tool in your leadership tool bag. In a previous career I was a combat-trained medic and vividly recall one important principle taught in training for our own safety. While assisting battlefield casualties you must always "keep the patient between you and the line of fire," in the hostile fire zone. I believe the same concept applies to the tough questions we might receive in the non-combat environment of life. This book provides readers with great insight on how to keep them protected between the question and the questioner when we open the floor to the "line of fire." The author relates that people ask challenging questions because they are kicking the tires, and you are the tires. Perhaps they just want to test your mettle. You will learn how to be ready and how to field the intent of questioners. When you have your confidence up, then you be able to "1. Open the floor. 2. Recognize the questioner. 3. Yield the floor. 4. Retake the floor." This manuscript prepares us to mentally enter the belly of the beast with preparation through Martial Art discipline. I believe that one of the most important skills in life is communication. In my present occupation it would appear that the leaders of the organization are petrified of conducting town hall meetings with employees. The higher they get, the more they seem as far away as the planet Pluto. Is it the fact that they expect an uncontrollable can of worms? Instead of seeing the importance of this forum, they would rather meet with 10 or less people at a time. At that pace it will take many years to meet with the 1700 employees in the organization. A larger forum provides an opportunity to diffuse many questions at once if the presenter is properly prepared by reading this book. If one person has a question, ten others probably have that same question. Small groups are great for focusing on a particular issue(s). Bosses can run, but they can't hide by using one-way forms of communication. A physician I once worked for used to say, "Never let the sun set on an abscess." It will lead to a systemic infection or worse. Read this book to begin to get a handle on your worst fears of the public forum. "In my role at Cisco Systems, I am confronted with challenging questions from customers, government leaders, press, and analysts on a daily basis. The techniques used in this book, In the Line of Fire, are spot on; providing straightforward ways to be on the offense in all communications situations." Sue Bostrom, SVP Internet Business Solutions Group and Worldwide Government Affairs, Cisco Systems "In an era where businesspeople and politicians unfortunately have proven their inability to be honest with bad news, I believe this book should be prescribed reading in every business school, and for every management training session. In fact, I hope it is read by a far wider audience than that. It's just what our society needs right now." Po Bronson, author of the bestselling What Should I Do With My Life? "Jerry Weissman tells the tales of the makings of presidents and kings, the dramas of the dramatic moments of our time, and in each episode he uncovers the simple truths behind what makes great leaders like Ronald Reagan and Colin Powell loved and trusted. Great truths made simple and compelling for any leader to use." Scott Cook, Founding CEO, Intuit "Jerry's book is a must read for any presenter facing tough and challenging questions from their audience. This book provides the fundamental foundation on how to prepare, be agile, and take charge no matter how difficult the question." Leslie Culbertson, Corporate Vice President Director of Corporate Finance, Intel Corporation "During one of the most important periods of my career, Jerry used the concepts in In the Line of Fire to prepare me and my team for the EarthLink IPO road show. He helped us field tough questions from the toughest possible audience: potential investors, but the same skills are necessary for every audience. Sky Dayton, Founder EarthLink and Boingo Wireless, CEO SK-EarthLink "Jerry Weissman helped prepare my management team for our recent IPO. I sat in on some of the sessions and was most impressed with Jerry's innovative ways of teaching and optimizing effective executive communication methods. This training, encapsulated well in his new book, In The Line of Fire, paid off handsomely during our numerous road show presentations." Ray Dolby, Founder and Chairman, Dolby Laboratories, Inc. "Whether you're a classroom teacher or the President, this book will help you be an effective communicator. This book is so insightful, reading it feels like cheating. Tough questions no longer test my limits." Reed Hastings, Founder and CEO, Netflix "Even the greatest start encounters tough questions. Read Jerry's book before you need it, or you'll be in deep sushi." Guy Kawasaki, author of the bestselling The Art of the Start "Have you ever been faced with a tough question? Jerry Weissman shows how it's not necessarily what the answer is. It's how you answer that will allow you to prevail and win!" Tim Koogle, Founding CEO, Yahoo! "Jerry's technique is both masterful and universal because it finds common ground between audience and speaker, hard questions and direct answers, all with a very simple principle: truth." Pierre Omidyar, Founder of eBay and Omidyar Network "I've been asking tough questions for half a century and listening to variously brilliant, boring, evasive or illuminating answers. Jerry Weissman's book will help anyone...anyone...answer even the toughest questions." Mike Wallace, Senior Correspondent, Sixty Minutes, CBS News Jerry Weissman has made a career of coaching nearly 500 execs on their IPO roadshows, the most critical presentations of their lives. Now, he's written an indispensable guide to answering the toughest questions you'll ever face. Using compelling examples from Presidential debates to stock analyst meetings, Weissman teaches how to respond with perfect assurance. Discover how to avoid the defensive, evasive, or contentious answers that have destroyed political careers and ruin credibility. Learn to control your entire exchange with a hostile questioner: the question, answer, interactions with questioner and audience, timing, and above all, yourself. Whether an executive, politician, fundraiser, interviewee, teacher, student -- or even a family member at Thanksgiving dinner -- you're judged on how you handle these moments. Get this book: handle them brilliantly. "Jerry Weissman has made a career of preparing senior executives for that moment. He's coached nearly 500 CEOs for their IPO road shows, the most critical presentations of their careers. Now, he's written an indispensable guide to answering the toughest questions you'll ever face." "Using compelling examples from presidential debates to financial investor meetings, Weissman shows you how to respond with perfect assurance. You'll discover how to avoid the defensive, evasive, or contentious answers that have destroyed careers and can ruin your credibility. You'll learn how to control your entire exchange with a hostile questioner: the question, the answer, the questioner, the audience, the timing, and above all, yourself."--Jacket You're standing in front of an audience... and you've just been asked the question you'd been dreading. Or, worse, you've been blindsided with a brutal question you never expected. What do you do now? Using compelling examples from presidential debates to financial investor meetings, Weissman shows you how to respond with perfect assurance. You'll discover how to avoid the defensive, evasive, or contentious answers that have destroyed careers and can ruin your credibility. You'll learn how to control your entire exchange with a hostile questioner: the question, the answer, the questioner, the audience, the timing, and above all, yourself