Here is a 5 step approach to handling questions along with some additional tips to make your next question and answer session go smoother.
You can read more in this article.
If you know your topic well and know who your audience is, it is possible to anticipate most of the questions that will be asked. When preparing your presentation, always try to make a list of questions you expect to be asked. Some of the most common questions will be something like this:
T O O L B O X |
What has to be done? How much does it cost? What are the alternatives? Who will be responsible? How long does it take? Is there a deadline? Do we get support? What can go wrong? |
Dealing with interruptions
Sometimes you may be asked questions during the presentation, even if you have asked the audience to wait. Whereas some questions can and should be answered quickly (for example, when a participant hasn’t understood something you’ve said), you might prefer to postpone unwelcome questions or comments.
T O O L B O X |
If you don’t mind, I’ll deal with this question later in my presentation. Can we get back to that a bit later?
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Summarizing after interruptions
After answering questions, especially those that require a longer answer, it is sometimes necessary to remind the audience what you were talking about before the interruption.
T O O L B O X |
Before we go on, let me briefly summarize the points we’ve discussed. So, now I’d like to return to what we were discussing earlier. So, back to what I was saying about… |
It is sometimes necessary to reformulate a question (i.e. say it in another way) before answering it. This not only give you time to think, it also allows you to make sure you have understood the question. With a large or noisy audience, it allows the other participants to hear the question (again) and finally, it gives you the chance to change the tone of the question, e.g. by making it less aggressive.
T O O L B O X |
I see. So, what you’re asking is… If I understand you correctly, you want to know… OK, let me just repeat your question so everybody can hear it. If I could just rephrase your question… |
The question is: |
You reformulate to make it: |
By: |
Negative |
Positive: |
Leaving out negative words such as: |
Aggressive |
Neutral |
Avoiding words which sound aggressive or have a negative meaning such as honestly, really, disaster |