{"id":35,"date":"2014-12-15T10:50:47","date_gmt":"2014-12-15T15:50:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/?p=35"},"modified":"2014-12-17T21:00:19","modified_gmt":"2014-12-18T02:00:19","slug":"working-with-sme-lessons-learned-from-ella-fitzgerald","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/?p=35","title":{"rendered":"Working with SMEs: Lessons Learned from Ella Fitzgerald"},"content":{"rendered":"

My passion for working with subject matter experts is an outgrowth from my early career as a daily journalist. I had the opportunity to interview famous, talented, brilliant people\u2026and some big-time politicians, too. \uf04a<\/p>\n

Of all the greats I have had the great fortune to meet, Ella Fitzgerald stands out among the crowd. I was in my mid-20s, and she was in her mid-70s. Go ahead, do that math. We were both in our prime. Preparing for that interview taught me one of the foundational lessons that I carried forward into other work with subject matter experts \u2013 do your homework!<\/p>\n

Ella Fitzgerald is nothing if not the ultimate female vocalist. Her talent went beyond jazz \u2013 although it can be stated with some confidence she helped define the genre. She also delivered popular music with a melodic flair and clear voice. I am still in awe over her delivery of A Tisket A Tasket <\/em><\/a> at 70-something in a crystalline, little girl voice.<\/p>\n

Know Your Subject Matter Expert<\/strong><\/p>\n

When I was given the opportunity to be alone in a room (seriously) with possibly the greatest female vocalist of all time, I was \u2013 let\u2019s just say \u2013 nervous. Excited and nervous. What does one ask Ella Fitzgerald? <\/p>\n

My father was a jazz pianist. I grew up on Satin Doll<\/a><\/em>. So I told Dad, who was flabbergasted by this opportunity. I needed some help here. What should I ask her? What would you want to know, as someone who has played her book for 30 years? <\/p>\n

Boy, am I glad I asked him. He gave me wisdom that has served me well in my career as a journalist, writer and trainer. Get familiar with your subject matter expert before you meet with them.<\/p>\n

If you get only one shot at speaking with someone of that caliber, and trust me, you get only one very limited window, make sure you find out something important. Use your time with them wisely. His first advice? \u201cWhatever you do, don\u2019t ask her how she got started. Everybody knows about the Apollo in Harlem. She\u2019ll blow you off as a stupid kid and you won\u2019t get another question. Go read about her background then ask her something about music.\u201d<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t have his background in music, so I downloaded some info from Pop. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat should I ask her?\u201d<\/p>\n

He thought about her material, her records, what he played, and asked why she did certain things on certain songs. I had some meaty questions that had some knowledge behind them.<\/p>\n

A Blur <\/strong><\/p>\n

I got in to see her with my little reporter\u2019s notebook, no doubt damp from sweat. I asked her dad\u2019s questions. She was interested, really interested. She liked the questions. We had a little singer\u2019s talk. And to this day, it was a blur.<\/p>\n

In fact, I recently found the program from the show and now I need to find my article. Somehow, as I look back, that was such a defining moment I need to make sure I\u2019ve preserved it for my dotage. <\/p>\n

For you, as a trainer and instructional designer, what are the takeaways? <\/p>\n

Two Lessons from The Ella Experience<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do your homework. That means know enough not to ask such a stupid question that your SME disregards you. You won\u2019t get what you need because you don\u2019t really understand the background and context, and you won\u2019t get what you need because the SME won\u2019t waste his or her time bothering to tell you.<\/p>\n

Record and document. An interview with a world-class subject matter expert is a once in a lifetime shot to get some valuable information and perhaps even record that person for posterity. No, I wasn\u2019t allowed to record my interview with Ella. But make sure you try to record the incredibly intelligent and experienced people you will meet so you don\u2019t miss anything in the blur of the moment. Ask permission as necessary. <\/p>\n

Not all subject matter experts are in the class of Ella Fitzgerald. But there are people of her caliber in all areas of endeavor and all walks of life, yes, even politics. As someone who designs, writes and delivers training, you are sure to encounter people who have risen to the top of their organization or their field all the time.<\/p>\n

Respect them all. Honor their greatness. And get to know them before they get to know you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My passion for working with subject matter experts is an outgrowth from my early career as a daily journalist. I had the opportunity to interview famous, talented, brilliant people\u2026and some big-time politicians, too. \uf04a Of all the greats I have had the great fortune to meet, Ella Fitzgerald stands out among the crowd. I was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-subject-matter-experts","category-training"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35\/revisions\/48"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingwithsmes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}