The reality of any presentation is that at some stage you are likely to get difficult or contentious questions from the audience. Image: ThinkScience.
Peter Dhu has some advice for handling the moment dreaded by meeting presenters – when they are asked a question out of left field that completely stumps them.
Some time ago I attended a conference in Adelaide where I was both an audience member and a keynote speaker.
One of the common themes I noticed with the presenters was that they often struggled with difficult or left field questions from the audience.
The question surprised them, they lost some confidence and in some cases their credibility as an expert suffered.
The reality is that during any presentation you are likely to get some difficult questions, or a contentious question, or have an audience member who disagrees with your point of view.
There are several ways to deal with these difficult questions and maintain your confidence and credibility. Here are some.
As with most things preparation is important: Do your homework and be prepared for those left field questions or the objections that you know people will raise.
It is about anticipation and planned spontaneity. Are you delivering bad news or good news? Is your subject contentious or straight forward? Who will be in the audience?
You can prepare by setting the ground rules of your presentation up front and outline what you will be talking about and what you will not be talking about. That way you can dismiss those questions that are outside your intended scope.
Try to anticipate those tricky questions. Do lots of preparation and ask yourself: “What question do I not want to be asked; what question would make me uncomfortable, and what questions would make me look less credible.” Then have prepared answers for all of these scenarios.
Find some point of agreement with your challenger: Agree with the person on some level and then add your opinion, new findings or alternate slant to bring the topic back to your stated position, resisting your gut instinct to get defensive and argumentative.
Finding some point of agreement, however small, with your challenger helps you appear as an open-minded and well researched person. You can agree in part and then add your difference and your justification for this difference.
Get back to them: No-one can know everything and be able to answer every possible question or objection on the spot, especially if it is a technical question or data related. However, as a good leader you know where to get the answer so you can get back to them. Don’t bluff or make up answers, rather find out and get back to them in an agreed and reasonable time frame.
Agree to discuss after the presentation: If the question is one that does not relate to the rest of the audience and you can see the audience glaze over and lose interest, then agree to discuss the question outside the presentation. This can be in the tea break, at the back of the room or even via email. This is especially the case if their question or concern is off the topic or outside of the scope of what you are speaking on. Thus, the audience may not understand the question anyhow (a niche question) and you can agree to discuss one-on-one at a later time.
This is an important strategy if you see the questioner has become emotionally invested in the question and you need to provide a safe environment in which to respond.
Involve them in the discussion: You can include their comments or their suggestions in your discussions and your presentation. You can ask the audience what they think, or if they can add any more to the question.
Do not set out to embarrass the questioner or disparage their viewpoint; rather explain why you have a different idea or viewpoint. Involving them can often defuse a tricky question and even if your final view is different to theirs, at least they know you have considered their point of view in reaching your own.
Don’t make it up: Fake it until you make it does not apply to answering questions. This is not the time to guess, take a punt or extrapolate your answer. Most people will be carrying a smart device and will be able to check on any wayward or unconvincing answer.
If the question is valid and relevant to what you have been speaking about and you do not know the answer, then agree to find out and get back to them.
So don’t fear your question-and-answer session, rather do lots of practice and anticipation, become comfortable with silence and deep breathing if you feel defensive or confronted.
Use some of the strategies above and you will be fine.
Peter Dhu is an experienced and inspirational keynote speaker. Based in Perth, he coaches executives and business leaders in Australia and South-East Asia in the art of public speaking. This article first appeared on the Corporate Communications Experts website.
