If you haven’t seen this weather video, take a look.
Warning: Swallow any food or drink in your mouth before viewing. It is HILARIOUS.
Weatherman Cory McCloskey from Fox10 News Phoenix recently faced a computer weather map malfunction and handled it like a champ. When the map, which automatically populates its data every 30 minutes based on outdoor temperatures, shows some crazy readings, he thinks on his feet, uses humor, and deadpans the whole thing.
His hysterical monologue got me thinking that no matter how much you practice a presentation, speech, class, or demonstration, things can go wrong. In risk management, you identify, analyze, and potentially mitigate risks. But sometimes, you just can’t anticipate how things play out.
So what do you do when you encounter a glitch like Cory McCloskey did?
- Improvise. If nothing else, the above video is a fantastic case of improvisation. And really, how much of life is truly just that?
- Go with the flow. In some situations, you can’t change it. Accept it and move on – “move the scene forward” as improv actors say.
- Know that as much as technology makes our lives easier, it makes them more complicated. Those complications leave much room for malfunction, which most people in the room have faced themselves.
- Relax before your presentation; it helps you remain calm and better equipped to handle things that go awry.
- Stay professional. Something Cory doesn’t do is blame anyone or anything. It’s his scenario to own going forward.
- Take a moment. It might seem like a lifetime to you, but pausing a second or two before responding is imperceptible. Just don’t wait too long; use your intuition and trust your instincts.
- Remain confident, which is key to thinking on your feet.
- Try not to stammer or freeze. Admittedly, this comes with years of practice. It still happens to many people, but it happens less often, the more speaking experience you have.
- Have fun. The most important lesson from this is to be able to laugh at the situation and try to get others to as well.
Do you have your own “weather map gone crazy” story? How did you deal with it?
P.S. Looking at the date of this incident (1/28: pre-SuperBowl), these apocalyptic fluctuations in temperature could surely have impacted football PSI weight!