Pair Of Points Preparation

I recently happened upon an interview with Jeff Randall, presently offering ballsy right-of-centre opinion for The Telegraph and a lively weekly Sky News show.  He recounted the tale of his disastrous first outside broadcast, live from in front of the Bank of England, distracted by a pair of passing abusive shouting young ladies.  It prompted him to ask the peerless Andrew Marr for advice.  He suggested you should fill your mind solely with two thoughts; the main point you want to make, and a back-up point in case the first gets forgotten (or of course, already mentioned).

I found this startlingly good advice when applied to those moments in sales meetings when all falls silent and insight is expected to gush forth from your lips.  How often do you curl up inside as someone waffles away, utterly directionless, in such position?

If you add to this the concept that we are way more influential when asking questions, then having your pair of points ready in such a format can make you the real winner when called upon.