Nobody has ever accused me of being a superior communicator. If I could have conveyed to the American people the concerns I had, and my heartbeat, a little more clearly, maybe I would not be unemployed and retired. And I might not be this happy, either. I learned a lot from Ronald Reagan about communication. Never got to be in his league in terms of it, but he could say something and the American people might not agree with the issue, but they could empathize with him.
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 20 December 2025 source ↗
Others on this question
View all 243 →Lack of confidence masquerading as perfectionism.
Worrying at things.
My inability to say no.
More from Sarah Hadland
View profile →If there could be a double of me to look after my child when I’m working.
Magician’s assistant on a cruise ship for two weeks when I was 19. When I was meant to be being levitated, I was silently crying while pretending to be unconscious as I hung limply off a metal pole. It was bleak.
Speedy, bossy, loving.
A glow of wellbeing.
A missionary in Africa – I think that was Sunday school-based.
Lemn Sissay. What happened to him and what he’s done with his life is extraordinary.
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Ina Garten, Cybill Shepherd, Courtney Pine, Mel Brooks, Ed Koch, Robert Evans
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