3 Ways to Ace Any Interview Question

You've just finished a race, you're pumped full of adrenaline, and you're heading to the podium to celebrate your top-three finish. You get up on the box, and suddenly you’re struck with the realization that you have no idea what you should say when the microphone is inevitably pointed at you. You know the trackside reporter will ask you some questions about the race, your strategy, your sponsors, or anything else they can think of, and you have to answer them on the spot. How do you handle this situation without sounding like a fool, freezing up, or missing an opportunity to promote yourself and your partners?

Of course, it’s important to have your sponsors memorized and a general idea of what you’ll talk about on the podium (that’s probably a topic for a different blog post), but how do you react to questions that you weren’t expecting on the podium? I’m going to give you three easy techniques you can use to answer an impromptu question with confidence and ease, even in the heat of the moment.

1.  Repeat

Rewatch a few podium interviews, and you’ll notice that a great trackside reporter is typically prepped with an observation from the race or the season. The series we compete in, Champ Off-Road, is graced with one of the best podium interviewers, Haley Shanley. As I watch her interviews, I hear her prompt drivers with things like “Leading as many laps as you did and all of the lead changes – you lost the lead, you gained it back…” or “This one did not come easy for you, in fact you really had to work your way forward, especially late in that race…”

The simplest way to answer an impromptu question that follows this lead-up is to repeat the prompt, in your own words. You could respond with “That race had some great battles between me and the racer in second place. Every time I fell back into second, it just inspired me to push harder to regain the lead” or “You’re right, I really had to fight for this win. Late in the race, my competitors were right on my bumper and if I had made any mistakes, there was no doubt I’d have been overtaken.” There’s no reason to try and get creative when your brain is hot off a race, just follow the lead of the trackside reporter, repeat the prompt, and give it your own spin.

2.  Recap

Regardless of the exact question the podium interviewer asks, there’s always a chance to recap the race or the events leading up to the race. Always be aware of your story and include a beginning, middle, and end in your recap. This could be a quick summary of the race, like “Even though I started in pole position, I had fallen to 5^th or 6^th by the competition caution. To work my way back up to the front, I had to chase down my competitors one-by-one and hope I could pass them cleanly and in enough time.”

Your recap isn’t limited to the race, either. If your story about getting to the race is more exciting than the race itself, tell the world about it. This could be something like “When we rolled in practice, yesterday, I thought our weekend was over, but my team rallied and worked through the night to get my car back together. Getting out here and putting it on the box makes the late nights and hard work worth it.” Remember to always be thinking about your story – no matter how insignificant it may seem to you, your recap gives fans and sponsors a sneak peek into your experience.

3.  Reframe

Remember that trackside reporters are journalists, and sometimes they’ll follow a lead for a story even though it’s not aligned with your brand or best interests. You might be asked a question that’s uncomfortable or even inappropriate for you to answer. This is a great time to reframe the question and change the topic to something you’d rather talk about. Here’s an example - imagine you struggled with getting traction during the race and you’re asked “It looks like you had some traction issues out there, like your tires just couldn’t get grip. Tell me about how that affected your race.” If you’ve got a tire sponsor, the last thing you want to do is badmouth their product on the podium, and this question has you in a tight spot.

By reframing the question, you can avoid the pointed negativity and instead highlight some positives. You could say something like, “Instead of focusing on the struggles I had out there, I’d really like to point out how these Nexen Tires carried me through some tricky track conditions and landed me on the podium.”

Reframing isn’t just for dodging questions, either. Remember that you have a limited amount of time to not only tell your story, but also to sell your sponsors. Every interviewer is different, but you can typically get a feel for how many questions you’ll get the chance to answer by paying attention to their interview style. In the series we compete in, a podium finisher typically gets two questions, and if they don’t thank their sponsors at the end of the second one, they likely won’t be given a chance to do so at all. You can use reframing in conjunction with any of the other techniques to transition into thanking your sponsors without being explicitly asked.

Here's what this could look like. You could be asked “We’ve only got one race left in our season, what are your plans for the final race?” This question doesn’t set you up well to thank your sponsors, but you could recap, then reframe, like this: “The season didn’t start out great, but I’ve worked hard to consistently finish well for the second half of the year. I don’t have a shot at the championship, but I intend to come out and put on a great show, regardless. As I reflect on the season, I’d really like to talk about how the support of Diamond House International has helped me promote my team by producing my merch, printing my banners, and wrapping my race vehicle. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Next time you head to the podium, go with confidence. Repeat, recap, and reframe any questions thrown at you to tell your story and represent your brand well.