Speakers are very afraid of the questions of the audience. That's for nothing. If you know how to work with them, they can turn from enemies into cool assistants.
Main Rules for Answering the Questions
Questions may be constructive and mocking (or even disrtuctive)
Constructive Questions
The first ones are easier to work with: they are asked by the people, who want sincerely to examine the theme and clarify incomprehensible details.Use them to continue the dialogue and satisfy the requests – try to build your answer so that it would become the continuation of the performance. In this situation you communicate not with the person, but with the whole audience – just so, as in the main speech.
If you have not precise data at the moment, that's not important. Say frankly about it and offer your versions: you may answer the question later in personal communication or share useful links with all the participants. The main thing is not to think up or manipulate the data – you risk getting in a foolish position and harm your expertise in future.
Mocking Questions
Mocking questions are more complicated to handle: they are put by the people who want to be in the center of attention. They are not interested in the answer, the target of the troll is to place the speaker in an awkward position and cause his emotions.
E.g., you are speaking about your favorite director. You say that he shoots deep and cultured films. Suddenly a driving question sounds in the hall: "How is it? If I don't like these films, I'm not a cultured man, am I? Stupid and uneducated?".
There are 4 simple rules:
Don't give the troll any time for discussion
Don't make him the center of attention.Remember: your audience is still in the hall or in ZOOM, you are speaking for them.
Don't ignore and leak questions
Explain, why you think them unconstructive or not on the theme. Don't give in to the provocation, turn the conversation in the rational way.
If you feel weak points in your speech, think about them beforehand
This will help to correct doubtful moments at the preparation stage or to think better of the answer.
Build boundaries and cut off unpromising discussions
If a troll makes an offensive joke or inappropriate irony, you as the speaker can mark the boundaries and say openly:
"I don't want to communicate in that format. If there is a constructive comment, let's discuss what exactly you disagree with. If not, and you just don't like me, then please let's not waste each other's time”
Tactics for Answering Questions
Clear Response Structure
For example, you can use a structure consisting of four blocks:
Thesis
A persuasive thesis is constructed through a consequence, not through a premise or comparison to an alternative solution.
Do it this way. To do otherwise is foolish (comparison) Things are bad, so do this (premise) Do this, or else it will be bad (consequence)
The consequence is a situation in your listener's future. In the thesis, you state that with your solution this situation will be pleasant: the listener will benefit or avoid trouble.
Please note: this is a situation in your listener's future, not in some abstract future. To understand what benefits the listener wants to get and what trouble to avoid, analyze your audience before communicating, even if it consists of two people.
Explanation
An explanation is a bridge from your thesis to your listener. It clings to the consequence with "why?" or "so what?" questions.
Do this, or else it will be bad (consequence) Why? Because it won't be pretty (explanation) So what? When it's ugly, everyone is sad (explanation)
To keep the listener from going off in an unexpected direction in his logic, explain your thesis in detail — justify the implication. Use the required number of "why?" and "so what?" questions until they lead to the obvious conclusion.
Proof
You can use emotional and rational tools for proof.
Rational tools are graphs, expert opinions, and experimental data. Emotional tools are stories, personal examples, illustrations.
Conclusion
The conclusion summarizes everything that has been said and brings us back to the thesis. Thus, at the beginning of the answer, we show our direction, then move toward it with explanation and evidence, and finally inform where we have come. If you leave the listener without a conclusion, they may interpret your evidence in their own way. Remind them exactly how this data proves your thesis, even if it seems obvious.
Three T Strategy
A strategy for responding to trolls when we don't want to negotiate, make up, or win his heart. 3T helps you move communication from the troll to your audience without looking justified or weak.
Touch
pretend to accept the troll's question: listen carefully, look at him, react to the question.
- "Thank you for the question..."
- "You're a professional troll! It's great that such people come to conferences..."
- "The question about... is completely irrelevant..."
- "I love answering tricky questions..."
No matter how exactly you react to the question (praise or scold), the main thing - to show the audience that you are not afraid to engage in communication.
Turn
take the hidden message (idea, thought) of the troll and turn it to your advantage by turning it toward the audience
Troll: "I think all entrepreneurs are greedy and incapable of caring about people” You: "Most entrepreneurs care about people”
The main thing is not to argue with a troll, but to convey your ideas and arguments to your audience.
Talk
amplify your thesis.
- "I have three reasons to think so...” or
- "There are at least three groups of people that every entrepreneur cares about: customers, employees, counterparties...”
