I recently sat in a meeting at a mega church preparing with the leadership team for the service. Instead of simply introducing me as the speaker and providing a quick bio or short story, they wanted to interview me so the church members could get to know me better.

Most of the questions were easy-peasy. Where are you from? What’s your favorite pastime? Tell us about Hershey.

Then the interviewer asked, “If you could swim in a huge pool of anything, what would it be?”

Most of you probably already know your answer to that question.

I was completely stumped. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“Like a pool of jellybeans,” she explained.

Oh. I’d like to swim in a pool of water.

Can you hear the thunderous gong? How about the loud buzzer? Can you see the crane pulling me off stage?

For those of us who aren’t good on our feet, someone will say something snappy, and we’ll have a witty comeback . . . three days later. Sometimes the simplest questions, comments, and interactions throw us for a loop.

Ask me to “wing it” and I splat on the ground. Guts everywhere.

Here are six tips for those who struggle with being put on the spot: Continue Reading…