Friday, February 24, 2012

WATCH THE TELLS

When Dan Quayle ran for Vice President, I noticed three "tells" (body gestures) when reporters asked questions that made him uncomfortable or angry. He -

1. blinked his eyes three times.
2. tipped his head to the side.
3. worked his jaw muscles.

I don't know if the news person saw the tells or felt the edgy feelings, but when Quayle did those three things, the reporter pounced. He wrote back and thanked me. He said he would give the suggestion to his advisers and they would work on them. I never saw those tells again.

What tells are our candidates leaving today?

  • Rick Santorum blinks and sets his mouth in a defensive down turn.
  • Mitt Romney has a pleasant expression all of the time, even when he talks about things that worry us and should trouble him.
  • Newt Gingrich has great debate moments, then his "Newt the Planner" takes over and he starts planning colonies on the moon, when we need to rebuild what we have. He does this with an arrogant, pleasant smile that says, "Trust me. I know what I'm doing."  
  • Ron Paul smiles and jokes about very serious matters, then clips them off with a one-word dig.
I love them all for what they are - a chance to reset our sails. The winner will be the one who can correct their tell and let us know we have been sailing into treacherous waters.

Right now, I am reading their tells and what I see is, "It's all about me." I need to see and hear, "It's about all of us. These are my solutions: one, two, three."

Tell them all, "Drop your tell and tell it straight and clear!"

Doris Gaines Rapp