Swivel chairs may be comfortable and useful in an office or at home. But they can be your nemesis in an interview or any setting where you’re trying to communicate key messages.
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff provided a perfect example of this during a remote interview about is wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, and her views on the Israel/Hamas war. Emhoff looked and sounded fine. But he damaged his messaging by twisting and turning in a swivel chair while answering questions. The distraction was palpable, as you can see in the short clip below.
In a nutshell, Emhoff took attention away from his message and drew attention to his swivel chair. Some viewers might have been so distracted that they missed his message, which was actually clear and concise.
The solution to Emhoff’s issue obviously was to ditch the swivel chair and sit in a stationary one. That’s what we recommend to our clients during our media training workshops. Interviews can be challenging enough. Don’t add to the challenge by swiveling your way through a remote or in-person interview.