Ever been watching C-SPAN, the Book Channel, or some innocuous press conference and see someone behind a dais fielding questions. That person behind the dais must be important to have people taking time out of their busy lives to come, and gather at the foot of the dais to witness him/her speak. Right? The dais represents the great divide between a reservoir of information (those sitting behind the dais), and information seekers (those sitting before the dais).
If aliens landed in this setting they would instantly know, for lack of a better term, the hierarchy of the room. It would be apparent, the very embodiment of the haves, and the have-nots.
Those behind the dais “have”, and those before the dais “have-not”.
So, the next time you see one of these things on TV, stay on it for a while. You’ll hear 4 or 5 queries posed by the “have-nots”, and the “have” will rattle off answers to those questions. Then something interesting will happen, a “have-not” will ask a question, and the “have” will pause, direct his eyes skyward, look down, and then say, “THAT’S A GOOD QUESTION”.
For a split second you feel good for the person that asked the question. He/she must be intelligent because a question was posed that got a big “gold star” attached to it. After the “have” announces the “good question” line he/she then begins to answer the question as if he/she had a prepared answer at the ready. And this is only due to the fact that he/she DID have a prepared answer at the ready.
A good question, if it were truly good, would stump the “have”. If the question were truly above average, there would be some hesitation or vacillation on the part of the “have”. A good question would garner some type of delay to the answer wouldn’t it?
What is simply happening, in this instance, is the “have” has played a Jedi Mind Trick on us. Most “haves” aspire to genius status so they use the “good question” trick to artificially raise the bar so when they answer the “good question” on the spot it makes them appear smarter than what they are. They announce the “good question” because they need everyone in the room to make the jump with them.
So the next time someone says “good question” to you, your follow up question should be “Why do you consider my initial question to be good?”
And for these next level tools out here that use the “great question” line, there is no hope for you.
Please die….Already!
If aliens landed in this setting they would instantly know, for lack of a better term, the hierarchy of the room. It would be apparent, the very embodiment of the haves, and the have-nots.
Those behind the dais “have”, and those before the dais “have-not”.
So, the next time you see one of these things on TV, stay on it for a while. You’ll hear 4 or 5 queries posed by the “have-nots”, and the “have” will rattle off answers to those questions. Then something interesting will happen, a “have-not” will ask a question, and the “have” will pause, direct his eyes skyward, look down, and then say, “THAT’S A GOOD QUESTION”.
For a split second you feel good for the person that asked the question. He/she must be intelligent because a question was posed that got a big “gold star” attached to it. After the “have” announces the “good question” line he/she then begins to answer the question as if he/she had a prepared answer at the ready. And this is only due to the fact that he/she DID have a prepared answer at the ready.
A good question, if it were truly good, would stump the “have”. If the question were truly above average, there would be some hesitation or vacillation on the part of the “have”. A good question would garner some type of delay to the answer wouldn’t it?
What is simply happening, in this instance, is the “have” has played a Jedi Mind Trick on us. Most “haves” aspire to genius status so they use the “good question” trick to artificially raise the bar so when they answer the “good question” on the spot it makes them appear smarter than what they are. They announce the “good question” because they need everyone in the room to make the jump with them.
So the next time someone says “good question” to you, your follow up question should be “Why do you consider my initial question to be good?”
And for these next level tools out here that use the “great question” line, there is no hope for you.
Please die….Already!
