to the AAE brief, I mistakenly thought I could make the brief- ing better by going off script to explain the finer points of radar waveforms. Not only was this a topic that I didn’t have expert mastery of, but whatever point I was trying to make didn’t come out coherently. At one point, I asked the general if I was making myself understood. He said simply, “No.”
STEP 10: DELIBERATELY
SLOW DOWN. Since you’ve thoroughly rehearsed, there’s a good chance you’ll talk too fast. Slow down. One trick is to record yourself talking on the day of the brief once the adren- aline has started flowing, then play the recording back to yourself. If you hear yourself talking too fast, record
yourself again, making a conscious effort to speak more slowly. Repeat the process until the cadence of your recorded speech sounds normal. Remember how that feels. Once the briefing starts, silently count to three between sentences as a continuous reminder not to rush.
STEP 11: STAY ON MES-
SAGE WHEN ANSWERING QUESTIONS DURING THE BRIEFING. Tis goes hand-in- hand with Step 7, 8 and 9. When you answer questions, stay on the basic path you’ve laid out for yourself. Don’t go breaking new trails. Bridge back to the central talking points. If
you feel like you’re under fire, you may try to seek comfort in topic areas with which you’re comfortable, but that may divert from the message. For example, I have a habit of seeking cover in the weedy, thorny defilade programmatic details, regardless of whether those details are relevant to the discussion. Avoid these kinds of traps. If you’ve done adequate preparation in the murder board, this should not be a problem.
STEP 12: PLAY IT STRAIGHT. If you, like me, tend to try to defuse tense situations with humor, don’t. Humor rarely has a place in pro- fessional briefings, and a bad joke can damage your credibility. Play it straight. Deal with the pressure, and save the jokes for a more appro- priate setting.
MAJ LOREN D. TODD is the assistant PdM, Radars for the AN/ TPQ-53 counter-fire radar. He holds an M.A. in management and leadership from Webster University and a B.A. in English from Central Washington University. He has been a part of the Army Acquisition Workforce since 2010 and is Level II certified in test and evaluation and Level II certified in program management.
CONCLUSION Te briefing went well, didn’t it? Pat your team and yourself on the back, then refer to Step 1. After the brief to the AAE, I mistakenly thought that my briefing skills had made the brief successful. Tey did not. Te process, not to mention the mas- sive input from my team, made the briefing successful.
Tough all of this preparation takes a lot of time and effort, the end result is a polished, professional product. And here’s the great thing: No one will ever know you’re not one of those Toastmasters guys. All they’ll know is that you’re a great briefer. And the more briefings you deliver, the more your suc- cess will build on itself. Practice will make you better, whether you’re a piano player learning a sonata or an Army major learn- ing to speak the foreign language of defense acquisition. But it’s not just practice that matters. It’s practicing the right way. Tat’s why I’m sticking to the 12 steps and I’d recommend that you do, too.
For further information contact the author at
loren.d.todd.mil@
mail.mil.
Although that briefing to the AAE went very well, a few weeks afterward, I delivered another briefing to the PEO and skipped a few of these steps— with unfortunate results. I recognize now that I will never fully graduate from this 12-step program.
ASC.ARMY.MIL
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