The Communication Transformation of Bill Gates

The year was 2007.  Steve Jobs and Bill Gates accepted an invite to be interviewed together at The Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital conference.  At the time, both were giants in the technology world, the Michael Jordan and LeBron James of computer science.  But when talk of terabytes gave way to sound bites, the pairing looked more like a Harlem Globetrotters razzle-dazzle dribbling around a hapless defender.  The moderator, Walt Mossberg asked Gates how Microsoft software ended up in some of Apple’s first-generation computers.  Gates was barely ten seconds into a somewhat geeky and haltingly delivered answer when Jobs cut him off and dismissively said, “let me tell this story.”  It was just another example of Jobs using his superior communications skills to steal the show, and all Gates could do was just good-naturedly chuckle and yield the floor.  

At some point in the ensuing 13 years, Bill Gates committed himself to never being in that position again. Whether it was the work of a communications coach or the most miraculous example of self-teaching ever, Gates successfully transformed himself into a confident and polished interview subject, the public-speaking equivalent of an awkward teenager blossoming into a poised adult.  This evolution was on full display last week during a segment on CNN in which Gates was being interviewed by Anderson Cooper and Dr. Sanjay Gupta.  If you want a clinic on how to master a remote, video-conference interview, watch this segment.  Like many of us confined to our homes, I’ve consumed much more 24-hour cable news than normal, and easily Bill Gates performed better than anyone else I’ve seen over the past two weeks.

In many of my media trainings with tech company founders, I’m often asked if it’s possible to graduate from being a stiff, nervous and introverted CEO, to a relaxed, conversational and inspirational leader.  When I say yes, it is possible, my optimism is often met with a fair amount of skepticism.  But I tell them that it’ll be similar to a weekend hacker in golf trying to transform themselves into a scratch golfer.  It will take what Grit author Angela Duckworth calls “deliberate practice” (working on your weaknesses with feedback) and then doing it over and over and over again until the proper technique is ingrained as your new muscle memory.

Short of having a communications coach by your side (or, these days, at the other end of a video conference) here are some takeaways from the Bill Gates/CNN appearance that are worth emulating when you speak publicly. 

The Tech:  Unquestionably, Bill Gates has the fastest available internet speed in his home (I mean if he doesn’t, who does?) so the quality of this Skype connection was as crystal clear as a professional satellite TV signal would be.  So, make sure all of your video conferencing communications are done over WiFi and not just a cell signal. While on your conference call, try if you can, to have every family member in isolation with you stay off any online activities that chew up internet bandwidth, namely video gaming, movie streaming, Facetiming, etc.  This will sharpen the look of your shot and prevent the video from freezing.

The Framing:  Notice how perfectly positioned he is in the frame.  The webcam is truly at eye level, not on a lower tabletop or desk in front of him shooting up at his face.  There’s also no excess empty space between the top of his head and the top of the picture frame.  In fact, his framing almost exactly mirrors the professional anchors on with him.  It helps make him look commanding and authoritative. 

The Shot:  A busy background behind you can be very distracting.  The well-stocked bookshelf shot is rapidly becoming a cliché, and besides, I find myself often distracted by the books in the shot because it’s a natural curiosity to see what people are reading. Gates has a soft and diffused background that serves to make him the focal point of the viewers’ attention.  In the Zoom application under “settings” there is an option to select a “virtual background.”  Experimenting with that is a good investment of time.

Facial Expressiveness:  Gates’ demeanor while he is listening to the others talk conveys warmth, confidence, enthusiasm and kindness, qualities that serve as an important filter through which all of his words pass. The tone of your message is significantly impacted by your facial expressiveness. The same exact message delivered by someone who looks intense, suspicious, negative and judgmental will resonate differently than the person who looks friendly, welcoming and respectful towards the other person.  

Dynamic Movement: Often times on a video conference, the only thing that seems to be moving on the people talking is their lips.  But when you watch Gates, you’ll notice how animated he is in both his gesticulation that add to his expressiveness and how the emotion and mood of what he’s saying is reflected in his facial expressiveness and his tone of voice.  Many studies have shown that people remember more about how a person looked and sounded than the actual words they spoke.

In these uncertain times, people with whom you communicate are looking to you to be a source of confidence, reassurance and optimism.  Gates’ positive appearance did nothing to detract from the seriousness of the times.  In fact if anything, it possibly served to make people less nervous and less anxious.