Speaking with Confidence
Lesson 14: Questions and the unexpected
Goal: handle questions calmly, and have a plan for the three things most likely to go wrong.
Questions are a good sign
Questions mean people were listening and care enough to ask. Treat them as part of the talk, not a test after it. Nearly everything in this lesson is a practitioner tip: what experienced speakers and chairs do.
Prepare for them
Before any talk or important meeting, write down the five questions you’d least like to be asked. Then write short answers. You’ll probably get at least one, and you’ll be steadier for the rest.
A simple routine for any question
- Listen to the whole question. Don’t start answering in your head halfway through.
- Repeat or rephrase it in a larger room or on a call, so everyone hears it and you get a moment to think: “The question is whether this will cost more next year.”
- Answer briefly, using PREP (Lesson 5) for longer answers.
- Check and move on: “Does that answer it?” Then look at someone else.
Tricky questions
| Type | Try |
|---|---|
| You don’t know | “I don’t know. I’ll find out and email you by Friday.” Then do it. |
| Off topic | “That’s a good question for another time. Can we talk afterwards?” |
| A speech, not a question | Wait for a breath, then: “So, is your question whether…?” |
| Hostile | Stay calm and slow. Find the real concern: “It sounds like you’re worried about the cost to members. That’s fair.” Answer that. |
| Several questions at once | “Let me take the first one, about timing.” |
| No questions at all | Have one ready: “A question I often get is…” |
Never argue with a questioner in public. You might win the point and lose the room.
End on your message, not the last question
If questions come at the end, don’t let the last one be the last word. After questions, close with your message again (Lesson 6): “Thanks for those questions. To come back to where we started…”
When you go blank
It happens to everyone. What to do:
- Pause. Breathe out. It feels like forever; to the audience it’s a moment.
- Look at your notes. That’s what they’re for.
- Repeat your last sentence. It often brings the next one with it.
- Summarise: “So, the point so far is…” This buys time and helps the audience.
- Skip ahead to the next thing you remember. No one knows what you left out.
When things go wrong
- Technology fails: have your talk work without slides. Carry it on one card. “Let’s do this the old-fashioned way” with a smile wins people over.
- Interruptions (a phone, a fire drill, a late arrival): pause, acknowledge it lightly if needed, then pick up where you were.
- You make a mistake: correct it simply and keep going. “Sorry, that’s 2024, not 2014.” No long apology.
- You run out of time: jump to your close. Never speed up to cram it all in.
The audience wants you to do well. They take their cue from you: if you stay calm, they relax.
Exercise 14
For your next meeting or talk, write the three questions you’d least like to be asked and a one-sentence answer to each. Afterwards, note in your log whether any came up.
Sources
This lesson is practitioner advice rather than research. For more on answering questions and recovering when you go blank:
- Abrahams, Think Fast, Talk Smart: Communication Techniques, Stanford Graduate School of Business (video)
- Stanford GSB, Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast