I was just thinking about some of the books I’ve read and how they fall into different categories.  Some are interesting but not particularly useful/applicable and some are useful but aren’t particularly interesting.  One book that was actually a little of both was Mindset by Carol Dweck.  There are interesting stories that highlight key points regarding fixed and growth mindsets that she covers early in the book, but it gets repetitive as you look at them in every possible situation (school, work, etc).  Looking back, I’m thankful to have read Mindset before a media training class last year.

Within the National Weather Service, anyone who has even considered doing an on-camera interview has heard the name Dick Brundage.  (Even though I had done several interviews before meeting Dick or taking his course, a few of my more experienced colleagues coached me with several of his lessons before I stepped in front of the camera the first time.)  His lectures are a big component of the web-based media training course we have; in fact, the embedded video clips from his past talks were the best part of the module.  When he was giving a day-long seminar in Honolulu, I jumped at the chance to attend.

The audience was mostly from state and local agencies, including a few emergency managers I already knew from past weather events.  Two of my coworkers were also there for the class, and in typical introverted scientist fashion the three of us sat together at the same table.  This actually turned out well, because part of the class was a hands-on workshop where we had to develop our own response to a provided scenario.  Dick had spent a lot of time brainstorming realistic scenarios for the different agencies involved, so we had our own NWS-specific one.

After developing our response together, one person from the group would then do a simulated interview with Dick in front of the class.  Afterwards, we’d review the video together and see what we could learn from it.  When this was announced, my first instinct was to come up with all the reasons why the other guys should do it.  One was a lead forecaster; as the highest ranking one of us, it should be his responsibility.  The other had previously worked as an on-camera meteorologist for a TV station; he was best one to represent us.  This thinking was a classic fixed mindset, reflecting the idea that if you’re going to do something, you better do it perfect the first time so you can impress everyone.  However, here I was with the rare chance to get one-on-one coaching from the preeminent media trainer in my field.  (The only drawback is that it would happen in front of 30 strangers.)  Opportunities like this don’t happen very often, so I volunteered to be the sacrificial interviewee.

The interview was a great learning experience.  Like a journalist looking for a certain answer, Dick came at the same questions from multiple angles and I tried to answer with the key points we had talked about as a group.  In between questions, he coached me on things I could do better, and then gave me the chance to practice it again.  Afterwards came the hard part–having to watch myself on the big screen.  I wanted to get the most I could from this, so I tried to set the tone by pointing out a couple nit-picky mistakes, hoping to overcome the typical group hesitancy to criticize.  I learned a few things from the view, the most notable of which concerned facial expressions; in worrying about being too wooden, I apparently overcompensate and am entirely too expressive.

As I mentioned in a previous post, it’s interesting to think back to a book long after reading it and see which parts of it stuck with you.  With “Mindset”, it was a pretty straightforward takeaway:  cultivate a growth mindset and watch out for when a fixed one tries to creep in.  (That, and be sure to praise effort, not ability.)  This has come up many times since the media training day, and I’m grateful for being able to identify and embrace these chances to learn and grow rather than shy away from them.