A lawyer prepping someone for testimony will say: "Remember, your job here is not to score points. All you want to do is to prevent points from being scored." Meaning don't lose your cool, never be glib, never make jokes, don't try to pretend you're smarter than the attorney, don't lie, but most of all, don't state anything more than the minimum necessary to answer the question.
Good advice that's too easily forgotten in the moment.
Very true. Last time I testified as a witness, as is occasionally required by my job, the lawyer reminded me "I know you've been here before. Simple answers. Never use a sentence when a word will do. Always 'yes' or 'no'. Never "yes, and blah blah" or "no, but blah blah".
Good advice that's too easily forgotten in the moment.