Planning, Scripting & Ideas
Pre-interview
Also called: pre-int, guest prep call, interview guide
Fifteen minutes on a call beforehand changes the recording that follows. The purpose is reconnaissance. You learn where the good stories sit, which questions this person has answered a hundred times, what they would rather not discuss, and how they talk when nothing is being recorded. You come away with a running order and a handful of specific prompts, and the guest arrives knowing roughly what to expect, which settles most of the nerves.
Two things to watch. Stop them before the best anecdote gets told in full, because the retelling on camera always lands flatter. And keep the prompts loose enough that you can follow the real conversation where it goes.