Rick Perry's worst nightmare – mind goes blank on national TV
by Terry Gault
It's the nightmare scenario for many people. You are on the spot – speaking in front of an important audience: peers, executives or high-powered customers. Your mind goes blank. You hear deafening silence as audience members look away in embarrassment. You stammer out a soul-crushing apology, "Sorry. I lost my place" as you madly fumble through the gibberish notes you thought might save you in such an eventuality.
Rick Perry demonstrated it on a big stage – national television. And, of course, every major news outlet jumped on the story.
This blog post offers a process you can use in moments like these when you go blank or something goes awry: your phone rings during your own presentation, the wrong slide pops up, the projector suddenly gives you the Blue Screen of Death, etc. These have all happened to me, by the way. In those moments, it's easy to descend into the hell of panic and paranoia. But it's not the only choice and it's certainly the least effective.
To Perry's credit, once he realized that he was not going to be able to remember, his facial expression seemed pretty relaxed. He smiled at himself and said, "Oops" with obvious good humor.
Another piece of advice that can prevent or mitigate these moments is to type up your notes in an outline fashion with major points, not a "word for word" script. Keep your notes handy and use 14 pitch or larger font so that you can easily read them.
Situate the notes near a glass or bottle of water. If you do go blank, simply:
1) Pick up the water, glancing at your notes as you do so.
2) Drink the water, as you gather your thoughts and refocus your energy.
3) Set down the water, glancing once more at your notes, if needed.
4) Carry on as if the entire act of drinking was carefully planned and choreographed from the get go.
In 99% of cases, the audience will be none the wiser and you will feel victorious for successfully and gracefully dealing with a real nightmare scenario.
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — Rick Perry says he "stepped in it" when he couldn't remember the third federal department he would abolish if elected, but insisted the debate blunder wouldn't force him out of the Republican presidential field.
"Oh, shoot, no," Perry told The Associated Press on Thursday morning, the day after making the error during a GOP debate. Asked whether his campaign, which is struggling to regain traction, could survive, Perry replied: "This ain't a day for quitting nothing."
Perry on Letterman – Top Ten Excuses
photo credit: eschipul
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