Honest Advice - For Hilary
by Graham Davies

Be tough, be knowledgeable, be diplomatic, and most of all, be honest.

These characteristics aren’t essential for misunderestimated presidents who can’t recall the name of the leader of Pakistan, who don’t believe there’s sufficient evidence of global warming to warrant signing up to international agreements on climate change, who have bad memory lapses about the extent and timing of their military service, and who don’t know the difference between Slovakia and Slovenia.

But anyone wanting the job of Secretary of State in the US administration needs to demonstrate all of these qualities. There’s no doubt Hilary Clinton is tough (you have to be to ride out the kind of character assassinations she’s suffered over the years), and she seems knowledgeable (as she’s always telling us).

But diplomacy is not her strong card. This is the former candidate who once indicated that one of the reasons she was staying in the Nomination race was that there was always a chance that her opponent might get assassinated.

And the bigger problem is honesty. Her campaign-trail misspeaking/minor blip/misstatement (aka “lie”) about landing in Bosnia under sniper fire might be dismissed as par for the course in the bloody hand-to-hand combat of nomination, and she dismissed this slight error very eloquently:

"I went to 80 countries, you know. I gave contemporaneous accounts, I wrote about a lot of this in my book. You know, I think that, a minor blip, you know, if I said something that, you know, I say a lot of things - millions of words a day - so if I misspoke, that was just a misstatement."

You know.

(Incidentally, just for the sake of the pedantry, and worrying about honesty and accuracy, if you wanted to talk a million words per day, that would be 11.574074 words per second, every second of every minute for 24 hours).

The point being: put that behind you Hilary, own up to it, cast it in the context of fighting the good fight to get the nomination, and make sure – absolutely sure – that you present yourself with real integrity.

You can use all the slick tricks in the book – PR, spin, advertising whatever – to sell a product, and you can get away with it and even do rather well. For a while. But ultimately, if what you’re selling isn’t any good, people find out. If it lacks fundamental integrity (and you’ve spent a lot of time telling them it IS the real deal), then you’re in big trouble.

So. Honesty, Hilary. One of the essentials, whenever anyone presents to the public. Whether it’s to an annual company conference, or a worldwide audience of billions.

A Victory for Plucky Welsh Defiance
by Graham Davies

I fit the Welsh sporting stereotype: I'm a passionate fan of the national game.

In Saturday’s match against the All Blacks, after leading 9-6 at half time, Wales were outplayed in the second half. It was hardly surprising, as New Zealand are a vastly superior team.

One of the most important weapons in the All Black armoury is the Haka. They say that it is merely a traditional challenge to their opponents. Frankly, this is rubbish. It is intended to be ritualised intimidation. Most teams do not know how to react: they turn into a disparate group mammoths, with an average weight of 16½ stone, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot like little lost boys, desperately trying not to look scared in front of Mum watching on telly.

Wales were different. They just stood motionless and stared at the All Blacks during the Haka…..and after it. Their statuesque statement said, "And? Your point is?"

In fact, it was the All Blacks who ended up not knowing what to do. They tried to re-form and out-match the Welsh Silent Stare. But the damage was done. The Haka and the response ended up unsettling New Zealand and inspiring Wales. It certainly accounts for such a blandly adequate first half display by a team which should always be 20 points better than their hosts.

Never forget the power of body language, even in the most intimidating of situations. It can set you up for a superb presentational performance, even before you open your mouth for the first time.

The final score on Saturday was Wales 9, New Zealand 29. It was also Defiance 1, Intimidation Nil.

Retiring Gracefully
By Graham Davies

Ten minutes ago, I received news that our entertaining guest decided to depart the dinner table. He never intended to become the main event, he didn't want to embarrass his host, and so in gentlemanly, gracious style, he opted to slip away from the party.

The panel is strangely perplexed, crestfallen and confused. It's the result they wanted. But it wasn't delivered to them in the way they wanted it. In terms of judging a situation and measuring his audience, you have to say that this was one piece of footwork from John which was faultlessly professional.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner: Len or John?
By Graham Davies

You're having a smart dinner with some rich professional friends. Along comes an unshaven, scruffily dressed chap, who gets confused over which knife and fork to use and when. But he's self-deprecating about his appearance, he has a natural charm, he's intelligent, he's entertaining, he's generous to others, and he's funny. So what do you do? Throw him out because he doesn't know which way to pass the port? Certainly not (unless you're an unpleasant, arrogant snob who puts the conventions and protocols of dining ahead of the personal appeal of your guests).

Strictly Come Dancing is the party, Len is the snobbish host, John Sergeant is our surprising visitor and the other diners are the voting public. Len's spoiling the party by getting all worked up and acid about John's inability to hold his cutlery the right way, and the more Len gets worked up, the more of a fool he looks, and the more everyone wants their unconventional new friend to stay.

We all love the underdog; we warm to people who're nice. And we hate stuffy, arrogant, pompous, humourless, narrow-minded individuals who expect everyone else to fall into line with their elevated expert opinion.

But Len's probably well aware of that: big-brother-X-apprentice-idol-factor-reality telly needs goodies and baddies if it's to raise any interest whatsoever, so maybe canny Len's just looking out for a long contract for himself and the approval of his paymasters, Simon Cowell style. Which leaves John as the fall guy and the paying public as the willing dupes.

There is a useful lesson from all this: whenever you are presenting yourself, if you take yourself too seriously for the circumstances, you will end up looking ridiculous. No-one will listen to you, like you…or be persuaded by you. On the other hand, a sense of self-deprecation and self-parody is actually very powerful. That’s the reality of it.

Foster Care in the Third Reich?
By Graham Davies

Councillor Michael Stark of Redbridge Council told Jon Gaunt of Talksport that the authority had instituted a blanket ban on smokers becoming foster carers. Jon told him he was a Nazi. From which I conclude that Adolf Hitler had a foster care policy based on an enlightened and advanced understanding of the risks of passive smoking.

Alternatively, Jon is someone who thinks it's OK to suggest that anyone he doesn't agree with him subscribes to Nazi values, attitudes and actions. These would include mass murder, racism, and crimes against humanity, which isn't an acceptable thing to say about anyone. Apart from Nazis, of course.

People might argue that "Nazi" is passing into common useage to mean anyone who holds fanatical views relating to anything at all. Maybe so. But words will always set off resonances which cut right back to their roots. And in an internet age, it's more critical than ever to take real care over your remarks. Anyone fancy a "crusade against terror", Mr.Bush?

Like you, vote for me
By Graham Davies

For Lewis Hamilton the magic number was 98 to become champion of the world. For Barack Obama and John McCain it is 270.

Whether it is votes, goals, points or position, success is a binary business. ‘Better’ or ‘More’ has to be calculated, and an assembly of ones and zeros is the only way to provide clarity.

However, how you obtain your success is far from binary. For Obama and McCain, getting people to vote for them it is not a black and white issue. They must persuade the electorate that either by way of natural fit or contrast they are just right for the White House. Persuasion involves a lot of grey.

In the American sales-centric society, there is almost a genetic predisposition toward persuasive presentations.

Both presidential candidates have extensively exploited the likeability factor in persuasion: I do what you do, I talk like you, I look like you….so I can represent you.

Even the otherwise cartoon-like Sarah Palin has done this well. By continually playing the ‘I am like you’ card she has made very little go a very long way in one-dimensional Middle-America.

Mind you, this approach works no matter what the nationality of the audience.
If you reflect their attitudes, goals, beliefs, and vocabulary, they will open their minds to be persuaded.

In the USA tonight, the grey of the persuasive process will only again become black and white with the ink on millions of ballot papers.