Scenarios and solutions

Question 1

It seems like nobody wants to be first to ask a question

Answer 1

• Absolutely any question at all is okay.

- For example, does anyone have any question about…?

Question 2

It seems that several people want to ask question at the same time

Answer 2

• Yes, the gentlemen with the orange jumper (if you don’t know their name). What would you like to ask me?
• So many question! Great! If you don’t mind, I’ll start with YXZ (the person’s name) as they raised their hand first.

Question 3

One person dominates the questions and it looks like others want to ask questions too

Answer 3

• If I could take some other questions.

- Let’s hear from others too.

Question 4

Someone asks for information that you already gave during your presentation

Answer 4

• That’s related to my introduction, where I said…

- I only mentioned this briefly, but…

Question 5

The answer to the question will be later in the presentation

Answer 5

• That’s an important question, and I’ll be coming to that…
• I’m glad you asked me that, because I’m planning to…

Question 6

The question is off topic

Answer 6

• That doesn’t seem to be directly related to… so maybe you’d be better asking me in person after this presentation.
• That’s a very interesting question, but not exactly on the topic at hand. I’d love to be able to talk about it later.

Question 7

The question only interests one person

Answer 7

That’s a great question but perhaps a little specific for most people here. I can explain it shortly. However, I’ll be happy to answer in more detail later.

Question 8

You aren’t 100 percent sure of the answer

Answer 8

• I can’t guarantee this, but I think it’s something like…

- Not quite sure but I believe that…

Question 9

You don’t agree with a comment or the implications behind a question

Answer 9

• That’s an interesting question, but I’d be much more inclined to say…
• Your question seems to suggest you think… but my own opinion would be more like…

Question 10

You think your answer will surprise them/is not what they expected

Answer 10

• You may be (pleasantly/unpleasantly) surprised to hear that…
• You might be expecting the answer to be, but in fact…
• Actually,…
• To be honest,…

Question 11

You get a question when you are right in the middle of saying something

Answer 11

• If I can just get to the end of this slide first.

- I’ll be very happy to answer just as soon as…

Question 12

You have trouble remembering what you were talking about before you were interrupted

Answer 12

• Where was I? Oh, yes,…

- What was I saying? Oh, yeah,…

Question 13

The question is too complex to answer quickly

Answer 13

• That’s a bit too complicated to go into right now, but…

- It might take me a bit too long to answer that in detail, but…

Question 14

When you can’t hear the question well

Answer 14

• Sorry, I couldn’t hear that. Could you say it louder please?
• Sorry, I couldn’t hear that very well. Could you repeat it a bit louder?
• I’m really sorry, I must be going dead. Would you mind repeating it again?

Question 15

When you can’t hear the question well (part)

Answer 15

• Sorry, I couldn’t hear the first part of your question. Did you say/ask xxxx?
• Sorry, I couldn’t hear the last part of your question. Could you repeat that part again please?

Question 16

When you disagree with the questioner

Answer 16

• Thanks for comment. It’s something for me to think about.
• I understand our point but I believe my approach offers a new way forward as I explained…
• We both agree on … but I guess this is where we think differently.
• If I understand you right, you feel…
• The one place we differ is…

Question 17

Letting the audience know that you need more time to best answer the question

Answer 17

• (… Let me see.) What’s the best way to answer that (question)? Well, …
• How can I best answer that? Well, …
• Let me think about this question…
• Just one moment, I need to consider my answer.

Question 18

If nobody asks a question in the audience

Answer 18

• A question I’m often asked is…
• I get asked this question so many times…
• I got this question in my last presentation and I found it quite interesting.

Question 19

When you don’t know the answer

Answer 19

• Answer with a question
• Responds with a parallel answer
• Asks the audience
• Compliments the questioner but be honest that you don’t know the answer
• Will get back to them

Question 20

When you don’t know the answer - Answer with a question

Answer 20

• Before I answer that, what do you expect from supervision?

Question 21

When you don’t know the answer - Responds with a parallel answer

Answer 21

• I’m not entirely sure how it is with supervision for people addicted to drugs but when it comes to supervision for firefighters…
• This is not really my area but I know that XZ method…

Question 22

When you don’t know the answer - Asks the audience

Answer 22

• Can anyone help answer that question?
• I don’t know, but what do other people think about this?
• I know there are experts in this audience. How would they answer this question?

Question 23

When you don’t know the answer - Compliments the questioner but be honest that you don’t know the answer

Answer 23

• That would be interesting to find out, but I don’t know the answer. Thank you for raising this question.
• That’s beyond the scope of my expertise/role/research, and I’m not sure how to give a reasonable answer. But that’s an interesting point.
• Thanks for this comment. It’s something for me to think about.

Question 24

When you don’t know the answer - Will get back to them

Answer 24

• I don’t know but I’ll find out and let you know.
• I don’t have the data at hand and I need to check it before answering. Is that okay with you if I get back to you later?
• I’m not sure what the answer to that is, and I don’t want to mislead anyone, so I don’t think I can answer the question right now.