This is even more prevalent when those I’m trying to interview are not quite keen on being the subject, on having a microphone under their nose, on me recording their words. There’s an interesting phenomenon that occurs when you’re talking to someone in a journalistic capacity which I see this all the time; you’re having a marvelous and stimulating conversation with a subject, getting lots of really useful information from them. Normally this takes place in the couple of minutes before you decide to start recording. It’s part of the warm-up process so that you can build a form of rapport with the interviewee. They say something very concisely or something a bit unexpected and you say to them ‘Hey, that was really interesting, can I just get you to say that again on tape?’ I ask them the question once more, we kind of run through our conversation again, but the second time it’s boring. People HATE being interviewed and I think often just the concept of having a mic in their face is incredibly off-putting.

I often try and really go past that level of discomfort with subjects and put the microphone so close in that they can’t really get away from it. If it’s too close to really be able to perceive it properly, as in if it’s so close to them that it’s out of their line of sight, people relax a little bit. It’s like a journalist’s blind spot. People end up not noticing the mic, or at least they end up feeling less uncomfortable with it.

But that doesn’t change anything for the subjects who rearrange, who move the location around, or who suddenly discover they’re pulled away. It wastes my time so much. That said, it’s often worth waiting around because those people who squirm are those who give depth of sound. They often have the most raw and real contributions. Waiting around gets good results. When people approach you, I’ve always found, the results are often near useless. Someone spotting you on the street asking about topic X, realises they have something to say about it too, often has a whole lot of five minutes to tell you nothing you want to use.

Rearranged appointments is never ideal, not only because you’ve spent that time to get ready and prepped for the initial occasion but because it no doubt screws up the rest of your timetable. Bang goes your study hour. On the other hand, the one way I’ve found to almost guarantee that your interview won’t be delayed or postponed is to turn up long before the arranged time. If you’re there before they even go into their preceding meeting there is little chance they’ll forget: you’re already waiting in the foyer. So when I have a 09:00 appointment, getting there at 08:30 might sounds like being desperately keen but, bring a book, and you have a much higher chance of keeping the date. On the plus side, planning arriving early allows you to sort out problems like the interview subject being at a different location, forgetting the date or such like. Those minutes are your insurance that you’ll keep to your plans, and it works.

My unexpected act of kindness came yesterday when I talked to my agency, informing them of my returning to University for the year. On my starting with the company in the middle of the summer I’d been informed several times of how they weren’t looking to take on students. I had been bracing myself for an angry discussion with the representative I work with. I’d missed her on numerous personal calls to their office and therefore emailed with my update, wanting to get her the information as early as possible. I didn’t want her to set up more interviews that I wouldn’t be able to attend. Two days later I finally got through and, to my great surprise, she was as kind and complimentary as could be. It made me think of how effective she was as an employee for the firm. Had she been disappointed and factious I would likely have not returned to work for them, and they’d have lost the HR investment in finding me. However, with such an irenic and conciliatory response, I’m happy to return to to the firm when I’m next in the country.

Best of all, her compliments really made my day.

Frontpage image curtsy Scott Beale / Laughing Squid.