I’ve conducted countless interviews over the last two years and I’ve learnt this about people.
People need to share their stories
People need to talk.
People need to be heard.
When people could see I was genuinely interested and listening, they ended up telling great stories.
These stories touched people, and other people couldn’t wait to share them.
My interviewees needed less prompts or questions, because they simply felt comfortable to talk.
The funny thing is, the best sound bites popped out the vacuum of silence.
I think this is amazing.
Creating space. Having patience. Waiting.
But also having curiosity.
I’ve never been afraid to dig deeper, to pry, to be curious, to understand, and show that I can empathize.
This creates trust and places someone in a position of safety and comfort to be themselves.
Sometimes during interviews there would be total and absolute silence.
Nothing.
Should I change the topic? Or go further into the same subject?
I often asked a further question.
I went deeper.
I’m not afraid to examine feelings and emotions
That’s where the gold is.
It’s no secret that feelings and emotions guide storytelling
Great stories move people to take action.
There are 3 ways we can talk on camera to achieve this -
1. Telling people what they want to hear
2. Telling people what we think they need to hear
3. Be ourselves and being honest
I watched number 3 work over and over.
I make it part of my job to guide people to be expressive
Show and not tell.