· tutorials · 3 min read
Tim Ferriss's interview checklist
The process he follows for every guest he interviews
In 2021, Tim Ferriss appeared in a 3-hour long interview on the “All the Hacks” podcast about the process he follows for every interview he does.
Here are my notes about his process.
Before the interview
Tim spends a minimum of 2-4 hours preparing for each interview, and up to 4-5 days for very high-profile guests. His process includes:
- Searching for unusual mentions in the guest’s Wikipedia page and diving deep into citations
- Reviewing the guest’s social media posts from the past 1-2 months
- Reading the guest’s favorite 2-3 long-form print interviews
- Identifying the guest’s “greatest hits” stories that always get a good response
- Asking the guest what would make the interview a “home run” and customizing accordingly
- ”I will also ask them, ‘Is there anything you absolutely don’t want to talk about or something that you’re really sick of talking about that you just don’t want to rehash?‘”
- Sending the guest a list of common rapid-fire questions in advance
I will always ask someone ‘What would make this interview a home run? When you look back three, six months from now, what would make this an absolute home run?‘
During the interview
Tim employs several tactics during the interview itself:
- Telling the guest upfront they have final cut and the conversation won’t be about “gotchas”
- Warming up the guest for 5-10 minutes before recording
- Interjecting to give the guest time to think when asking a tough question
- Blocking the interview into sections and letting the guest know what’s coming
- Rescuing a boring interview by talking more and extending the recording time
- Asking the guest to restate something if they stumble, since it can be cleaned up later
”My job is to make you sound as good as possible. If you’re nervous, put that on me. It is my responsibility as the interviewer to direct and shape and prompt in the best way possible.”
After the interview
After the interview, Tim focuses on a few key things:
- Identifying and cutting out excessive verbal tics like “you know” and “like”
- Flagging sensitive topics the guest mentioned and double checking if they want it included
- Having his team review the transcript for anything else that should potentially be cut
”You will absolutely notice that. So I want my guests to sound as good as possible…You might hear that literally 20 times in one interview, you’ve got to clip that, they just won’t sound as good as they should otherwise. And that’s part of your responsibility.”
Conclusion
Tim puts an immense amount of effort into the entire process - from prep to editing - in order to bring out the absolute best in his guests and create an enjoyable, valuable listening experience.
If you’re a podcaster, the whole episode is worth a listen. We at Dashpod are also building an AI copilot that helps research your guest and come up with great questions during the interview.