Six Strong Communication Tips From Some of the World’s Best Interviewers

Do you have an important interview coming up and wondering if you are prepared? Perhaps there is a networking event that you would like to attend but you are doubting your communication skills? Parsons Toastmasters wants to make sure that you are prepared and comfortable with you public speaking. Besides partcipating in your weekly Toastmaster meetings, consider the following six communication tricks, listed by Courtney Seiter, that can help you conduct a stellar interview, build a new relationship or simply become the best conversationalist in the room.


1. First prepare note, then toss them
Good interviewers always study up on their subject’s background – many even have a staff whose job it is to collect those resources. If you can do so in advance, research the person or people with whom you’ll be speaking. A bit of familiarity will make you feel more confident – and will prime your subject to open up to you

2. Match Your Partner – in mood, energy level, language and body language
“The more comfortable you make someone feel, the better interview you’re ultimately going to get,” says interview veteran Katie Couric. And how do you make someone feel more comfortable? Great interviewers do it by meeting subjects on their level. That means matching their mood, energy level, language style – even body language.

3. Practice Flexible Listening – here is how
Skilled interviewers become adept at listening not just to the words their subject is saying but also the tone in which the words are said, the pauses and nuances of the answer and what’s being left unsaid. This active, flexible listening lets them know when to move onto a new subject and when the moment is ripe to probe a little deeper with a follow-up question.

4. Activate the Power of the Pause

When a pro interviewer feels a subject is holding something back on a particular topic, they’ll often use the power of silence at the end of the answer to draw out more information.

5. Cultivate Curiosity, the Dale Carnegie approach

As Dale Carnegie famously explains, the beauty of curiosity is that it makes you nearly irresistible to everyone around you.

6. Practice Ego Suspension: The Power of Forgetting Yourself

At the next gathering you attend, resist the urge to tell that one story that always kills and instead focus on asking questions of someone new. It may be unfulfilling at first, but you might be amazed at the end result

For full insights into each of the 6 steps, check out the blog posting by Courtney Seiter called 

6 Powerful Communication Tips From Some of the World’s Best Interviewers