“And that’s the end of my presentation, so now I would be
happy to answer any questions you may have”.
“Any questions?..............................”
“Would anyone like me to expand on any of the points I have
made?..........................”
“I’m really very happy to talk about anything……………………………….”
“Last chance………………………………”
“Well, if there are really no questions……………..we had better
go to lunch.”
We have all witnessed such situations and you may even have
been on the receiving end at a presentation of your own. It all feels a little
awkward, and the bigger the venue the worse it feels for all concerned. The most
ghastly one I experienced was on board a ship where I was giving a talk in a medium-sized
room. Topping the bill was a Scandinavian futurologist who was flown in by
helicopter to speak to all 1,500 of us in the main theatre. When no one wanted
to ask her a question the collective feeling was quite excruciating and it
completely overwhelmed any impact she had achieved in her presentation.
You could blame this on bad chairmanship – the chairman of
such as session should see it as their duty to manage the situation using means
such as planted questions or questions of their own. I, however, urge anyone I
am coaching to seize and maintain control of the whole scenario whenever they
are presenting.
So, don’t let any silence linger when you open the floor to
questions. If none are forthcoming then
pose one of your own! Use the line:
“Something I am often asked is…..”; then pose a question and answer it, all of
which should be very easy. What you will invariably find is that this starts a
flow of genuine questions.
You need to bear in mind that the main reason for no
questions is generally that no one wants to go first. By going first
yourself – probably with a question that is even personalised to the audience –
you make another key point and keep everything moving along.
So next time you present be sure to have a few FAQ-type
questions up your sleeve.
Adapted from Nick Fitzherbert's book, Presentation Magic
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