Answer with Tact and Skill

The questions have been sorted out. The next key is how they get answered.

  • Talk to the whole audience, not just the questioner. This is a common mistake. People don't like to be left out. Eye contact is important to maintaining control and not letting side discussions develop. It may also be more important that someone other than the questioner hear the answer to the question.

  • Answer positively, without apology. Saying, "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to cover that," is immaterial, time-consuming, and self-deprecating.

  • Be careful with humor, sarcasm, criticism, or arrogance. You can make an enemy for life by making a "witty" answer to the wrong person. Innuendoes about the questioner's motivation or intelligence generally ...

Get How to Prepare, Stage, and Deliver WINNING PRESENTATIONS now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.