Start With the Headline You Can Defend
Write the first sentence of an interview answer as a defendable headline.
Lead with the sentence you would not mind seeing in quotation marks. What changes in the answer The first sentence is the quote most likely to travel. Plain-language discipline says the lead should carry the main point in terms the audience can repeat. Background can follow, but it should not precede the answer. How to apply it Use the first sentence to carry the point, the second to prove it, and the third to give the action or boundary. This creates a quote that remains accurate after editing. Common trap The weak move is to protect yourself with abstractions. The…
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