I make sure my cutting is only out of water when absolutely necessary..

 

'Snip'
Only once everything is ready to receive the cutting, do I actually 'snip' it off the plant, and then I drop it straight into a bowl of water.

 

Once you remove the cutting, the pressure within the cutting drops, (a little like blood pressure would drop a bit if you cut your arm off - don't try this at home kids..).

 

If you plunge your cutting into water, the reduction in pressure actually forces a minute amount of water up into the stem of the cutting, sealing the wound to the outside air.  This buys us a little time to prepare the next step..