Ever had one of those awkward but oh so funny situations happen at work? Of course, you have — because those moments happen to all of us. We don’t plan them. We may not want them. But they happen. In today’s Secrets from the Studio, I am sharing an embarrassing but oh so funny moment that happened on LIVE TV.
This is one of those moments best shared over coffee but since that is not an option right this moment — I will tell you now. There I was on LIVE TV interviewing a nervous guest. Most of her responses were just one word. One-word answers make for a long interview. Then I decided to take a drink of water. Somehow the sip of water concluded with me spilling the entire glass of water all over the front of my dress. We were LIVE on the air —-so that’s a really BIG oops. Please tell me you can feel my pain or at least understand how totally embarrassed I felt right at that moment.
Laughing and Wiping Up Water
Now, this is the kind of mishap for which there is no media training or clean up protocol. Instead, this is the kind of awkward moment in which a healthy sense of humor pays great dividends (or at least keeps you from running out of the building in the middle of a live TV show). With this in mind, I did the best I could to keep the conversation going — while laughing and wiping up the excess water. If we had this comedic moment on tape, I would share it with you so we could laugh together.
My guest’s reaction? She laughed ……a little. After all, she was just 8 years old and she seemed nervous about being on television. You might be wondering why an eight-year-old girl was making a guest appearance on Bridges. I wondered about that myself and was initially reticent about booking her on the Bridges show. However, her well known Nashville publicist assured me this 8-year-old was TV ready. This little girl was no stranger to the stage, and she loved singing about Jesus.
With that in mind, I don’t know why the little girl was so nervous. I also don’t know why I spilled an entire glass of water during the interview. If you’ve ever wondered whether the glasses on a set are filled with liquid — here is your answer. Sometimes they are.
I Don’t Know if She Remembers
Today that eight-year-old girl is a grown woman. I don’t know if she remembers the interview, but I certainly do. I even remember that I wore a peach dress. Well, a peach dress with a large water spill across the front of it. It is not an incident easily forgotten. It is an incident though about which I can laugh. I hope that today’s Secrets from the Studio highlights how a healthy sense of humor can make even the most awkward moment lighter and brighter.
Here’s to laughter that really is good like a medicine.
Blessings.
Monica Schmelter is the General Manager of WHTN, Christian Television Network and host of daily television show Bridges. This article is an excerpt from Monica’s latest book Messy to Meaningful – My Purse Runneth Over to learn more go to monicaschmelter.com
