海角大神

Millions of Americans will tune in to tonight鈥檚 presidential debate. Most of them, it鈥檚 fair to say, are primarily interested in how President Obama and Mitt Romney will handle themselves. I鈥檒l watch for that, too.

But my primary focus will be on Jim Lehrer of PBS, who will be moderating his twelfth presidential debate. I鈥檒l be eager to see how Jim practices what he taught me more than 40 years ago 鈥� the art of the interview.

I was a young investigative reporter and political writer for the Dallas Times Herald, and Mr. Lehrer was my editor. On my first day he walked over to my desk in the newsroom and asked me to tell him how I did interviews. He had read many of my stories, but had never actually seen me conduct an interview.

I told him that when I got an assignment I first developed a list of possible sources and then drafted a short inventory of pump-primer questions. 鈥淥kay,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hen what?鈥� I still wasn鈥檛 sure what he was getting at. So I continued. 鈥淲ell, after some brief small talk I鈥檒l launch into the interview. I鈥檒l ask a question, my source will give an answer, then I鈥檒l ask another question.鈥�

At this point, Jim made a sound like a buzzer going off on a TV game show. 鈥淲ait a second,鈥� he said, raising his hands in a 鈥渢ime out鈥� gesture. 鈥淵ou said you ask a question, the other person answers, then you ask another question.鈥�

鈥淲hat鈥檚 wrong with that?鈥� I said. 鈥淭he purpose of interviews is to gather information. The only way to get answers is to ask questions.鈥�

Then Jim laid some of his Texas wisdom on me. 鈥淒on鈥檛 be too quick to believe that the only way to get answers is to ask questions,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nother way is to listen slowly.鈥�

Jim urged me to ask a good question, listen attentively to the answer, and then count silently to five before asking another question. I argued that five seconds would seem like an eternity to wait after someone responds to a question. Then it occurred to me. Of course it would seem like an eternity, because our natural tendency is to fill a void of silence with sound, usually that of our own voice.

鈥淚f you鈥檒l resist the temptation to respond too quickly to the answer, you鈥檒l discover something almost magical,鈥� Jim said. 鈥淭he other person will either elaborate on what he鈥檚 already said, or he鈥檒l go in a different direction. Either way, he鈥檚 expanding his response and you鈥檒l get a clearer view into his head and heart.鈥�

Giving other people sufficient psychological breathing room 鈥� even those who weren鈥檛 very eager to talk with a reporter 鈥� seemed to work wonders. When I bridled my natural impatience to 鈥済et on with it,鈥� they seemed more willing to disclose, explore, and even to be a bit vulnerable. When I treated the interview more as a conversation with a purpose than as a sterile interrogation, the tone of the exchange softened. It was now just two people talking, not a news reporter mining for data like a dentist extracting teeth.

Of course, Lehrer won鈥檛 be able to practice fully the interview pause in tonight鈥檚 debates. The fast-paced, sound bite-driven format of televised debates isn鈥檛 conducive to five-second silences, but I have no doubt Jim will moderate the discourse with the same thoughtful tone he instilled in me as a young journalist. Today's political leaders could use more of that tone.

In January one of the candidates in this week鈥檚 debate will be sworn in as president. To lead effectively, he鈥檒l be smart to take a cue from Jim. He should talk so people will listen, and he should listen so people will talk. Engaging people in that way is the only path to real dialogue.

Of all the things leaders of change do, talking is among the most visible and certainly among the most influential. Whether you are a prominent CEO or the head of the PTA at your child鈥檚 school, there are four critical orientations to sound leadership. They combine to help people to engage each other in ways that produce breakthrough results.听Approach any leadership role by being:

鈥� Think-friendly. Adopt a growth mindset that you are capable of solving problems in fresh ways. Exercise curiosity by asking smart questions to explore and discover. Challenge your own conclusions to ensure that your assumptions are valid. Make appropriate connections that lead to a richer mix of possibilities.

鈥� Talk-friendly. Develop and use dialogue and appreciative inquiry. Listen to learn rather than to outwit and overpower. Exercise persuasion and influence rather than position and authority. Be willing to be influenced rather than assuming that the views of others should always be subservient to yours.听

鈥� Trust-friendly. Behave in ways that earn trust. Extend trust to others. Personify trust in all you do. In every relationship, make trust first so it will last.

鈥� Team-friendly. Work with people in ways that foster genuine collaboration. Remember that we live in an interdependent world where progress (and even survival) is about mutual reliance and overlapping interests.

That spirit of sincere inquiry and cooperation not only makes good leaders, it finds solutions. With Washington gridlocked, America divided, and budget deficits looming, the next American president will need that spirit of constructive collaboration more than ever. To start, Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama should look to Lehrer鈥檚 example tonight.

Dr. Rodger Dean Duncan is founder and CEO of , which specializes in leadership and organizational performance. He is the author of