You're on stage and the audience throws unexpected questions. How do you stay confident?
Keeping your confidence when faced with unexpected questions can be challenging but is essential for effective public speaking.
Unexpected questions can throw even the most seasoned speakers off balance, but staying confident is key. Here are some strategies to help you stay composed:
- Pause and breathe: Take a moment to collect your thoughts. A brief pause can help you formulate a clear response.
- Acknowledge the question: Show the audience that you value their input by repeating or paraphrasing the question.
- Stay honest: If you don't know the answer, admit it and offer to follow up later. Transparency builds trust.
How do you handle unexpected questions during presentations? Share your strategies.
You're on stage and the audience throws unexpected questions. How do you stay confident?
Keeping your confidence when faced with unexpected questions can be challenging but is essential for effective public speaking.
Unexpected questions can throw even the most seasoned speakers off balance, but staying confident is key. Here are some strategies to help you stay composed:
- Pause and breathe: Take a moment to collect your thoughts. A brief pause can help you formulate a clear response.
- Acknowledge the question: Show the audience that you value their input by repeating or paraphrasing the question.
- Stay honest: If you don't know the answer, admit it and offer to follow up later. Transparency builds trust.
How do you handle unexpected questions during presentations? Share your strategies.
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Best way to buy time and get thoughts collected is to respond to the query with "That is a great question..." Most folks bold enough to ask the question in public would like a little more attention. "Can you provide a little more background or context?" will spark a response. Meanwhile, pay no attention to the answer, but get collected.
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When facing unexpected questions you need to stay authentic and remember: 1️⃣ You are here to share your knowledge not to show that you know everything. 2️⃣ You are not seeking audience validation, you know your worthiness so stay calm. 3️⃣ As a human, think of the questions and try to use your knowledge, to get the answers. 4️⃣ Share your thoughts loudly with your audience and help them reflect on what you have said, this will increase their engagement.
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When an unexpected question comes your way here's what you can do to handle it: - stay calm, take a deep breath and pause - process the question and then paraphrase it for the audience member who asked the question. - This not only shows respect for the person who asked the question but it also gives you some time to think of a response. - When you respond maintain an open posture and respond calmly, concisely and confidently. - at the end of your response always ask the audience member if your response gave them clarity on the question they had. - if you don't know the answer you could say something like - "that's a great question. Allow me to get back to you on this over email" and make sure you find out the response and follow through.
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As a public speaker, we shouldn't be oblivious to remain calm. No need to be get butterflies in your stomach. Just ask that person who raised an unexpected question to give more deets regards their conundrum. Keep in mind that there's no need to speak fast. Give some pauses between your conversation, so that person and you can grasp what you're discussing. Stand still and focus on his/her eyes. So, he might rethink what he asked. Thus, these processes will accentuate confidence in you.
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I have found that unexpected questions often surface our startups' real challenges. During a recent semiconductor cohort pitch, a question about chip testing costs sparked an impromptu discussion that helped two startups find testing partners. Key learnings from my experience: 1. Always ground responses in ecosystem context - whether it's funding gaps, infrastructure needs, or talent challenges 2. Use unexpected questions to facilitate connections - sometimes the best partnerships emerge from unplanned discussions 3. Stay current with DeepTech trends - our startup ecosystem moves fast, and questions often reflect emerging market needs
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