Hate that deadly silence after, ‘Any questions?’ Wish someone apart from the Black Hat or the fluffy HR type asked the questions?
It’s time to change the Q&A ritual. It’s broke and you need to fix it.
Following the New Q&A Ritual means:
- You’ll have fewer questions focused on the needs of just one person
- You’ll have more questions that are of use to the group
- You’ll have more questions. End of sentence.
Let’s look at what the ritual is now, why people don’t ask questions, and how we can set things up so that more people ask more appropriate questions.
The current Q&A ritual
Presentation dwindles to a close.
The speaker or the facilitator asks, ‘Any questions?’
In almost all cases, there is either:
- total silence
- a couple of questions dredged up by polite people or
- a bunch of ‘challenging’ questions from people who like to create a stir.
None of this is useful to the audience or the speaker.
People refrain from asking questions because they haven’t got any, or because they don’t feel safe asking them
If people don’t have a question you’ve either answered all the questions in their head (yeah, right – droned on and on more like), not given them anything they find relevant, or, significantly, not given them enough time to find the questions they do have.
There aren’t many people who like sticking their hand up in front of a group, and even fewer who (ahem) ask useful questions. You’re also battling against the inertia of 20-45 minutes of them sitting in silence (bad presenter, BAD presenter), so they need some time to rouse from their daze.
People will ask questions when you give them time and make it safe
Even the brightest people need a moment or two to marshall their thoughts, and are more likely to ask questions when they feel like they’re acting on behalf of someone else.
The New Q&A Ritual
Towards the beginning of your session say:
I’m going to share some of my thoughts on this topic, then you’ll have a change to quickly confer with your neighbours and ask me any questions you still have.
At the end:
You’ve been listening to me for a while, but I’m sure you have some questions still unanswered in your head. Take 2 minutes to talk to the people nearby and write down some of the things you’re interested to hear more about.
Nod and smile encouragingly then turn your back on them, take a sip of water, gather your notes, walk to the back of the room and check your Blackberry, whatever makes it clear that you mean it.
After a couple of minutes, ask for volunteers to relay the questions coming up from ‘their group’s discussion’.
Suddenly, people have had time to think what they’d like to ask, and safety as they’re not necessarily asking on their own behalf.
What do you think? Are you already using the New Q&A Ritual, or some variant of it, to handle the Q&A session? Leave a comment…
Any questions?
Related posts:
~ How to review your presentation: Two things people get wrong
~ 9 easy things you can do to stand out in technical presentations
~ 3 reasons why you should deliver your presentation like it’s a conversation
In other news:
- I’ve been getting stuck in to LinkedIn, having been lazy about it for a year. LinkedIn is like serious Facebook for business. Extra-ORDinary who you’re connected to by just one or two degrees of separation. If I haven’t linked in (!) with you yet, invite me:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewlightheart
- I attended the launch of PrettySmart, Natasha Golding’s company that specialises in crafted web content. It was a truly interactive event, including a Venn diagram for business cards, and an ever growing tip wall..
- Oooh, and I’ve posted a question on LinkedIn:
What are the worst ‘crimes’ you’ve seen in technical presentations?’
If you’re on LinkedIn, go answer it. If you’re not, it’s free to create a profile and a truly great investment, especially in these uncertain times. (It’s not what you know…)
- I’m going to be speaking at Barcamp Singapore this weekend. Coming?
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The Q&A session has long been the most dreaded part of the presentation even for the most seasoned presenters. I like your suggestions and you are correct in saying there is a need for the audience to feel safe in order to ask questions. I also like the advanced notification that Q&A is coming.
One thing I do to handle the potential dead silence is to have a few questions of my own that I can ask them. This often breaks the ice a bit.
One rule I have is to never leave the Q&A to the very end. I always say the following: “Before I finish up with my final remarks, I would like to open it up for questions from you.” The reason for this is because you always have the last word and the closing remarks can remedy a difficult situation. There is nothing worse than delivering a great presentation only to have a sticky question that you may not handle well as a final closing.
Saving your final remarks for the end gives you an opportunity to end on the right note and frame of mind.
Hi MJ
What a good point.
Restating your one big point, or best piece of advice at the end keeps your momentum strong.
Thanks!
MJ,
Interesting point, esp in a culture like Singapore where questions and comments are not very common.
- Abhishek
I really like this process! When my audience talks to each other first, they get a chance to make sure their voices still work and practice asking their questions, and they also have an opportunity to meet each other. This in turn helps interaction, networking and community-building — all really important outcomes of professional meetings for me. Thanks!!
@Abhishek – Yeah, I think this is particularly pertinent in Singapore…
@Jill Thanks – I hadn’t thought about this helping community-building too…
I spoke at BarCamp Singapore this weekend and so had another opportunity to put into practice what I was talking about.
(It worked, just in case you’re wondering…)
Andrew,
When I first began speaking, I was happy if people didn’t ask questions. It meant I didn’t have to think on my feet and risk not knowing how to respond. And it meant, I thought, that I had so thoroughly and insightfully covered the topic that the audience had nothing to ask — they could only sit in awed appreciation of my wisdom. Right.
Now I judge my effectiveness by the quantity and quality of the questions I get. I want lots of questions, but not dumb ones. (Dumb questions are more a reflection of my presentation than of the audience’s intelligence.)
I’ve never tried what you’re suggesting, but it makes a great deal of sense. I can’t wait to try it out.
And I agree with M.J. about ending not with an answer to the last questions, but with my final remarks.
One question I’d ask myself when planning the session: why am I asking for questions? The “presentation” model implies one-to-many. (I realize this is not really what you’re talking about, but I think it’s true in the majority of cases.) This can boil down to “I know stuff, and you don’t.”
My point is this: if you’re asking for questions to make sure you’ve transferred knowledge, like the truck driver who dropped off my new dishwasher this week, then you’re buying into that enlightenment-as-commodity frame of mind.
So: if instead you’re inviting questions (and even comments) so people can test the ideas, fit them into their own contexts, relate opportunities and barriers–why not build in a few minutes for that at key points during the session?
I like the idea of having people interact with their neighbors, and that could apply here. I guess I’m urging not to have every presentation proceed on so predictable a path.
I think Dave has a good suggestion. One way to engage your audience with your presentation is to ask specific questions during the presentation. This is ideal when you have to present after lunch when most people are entering a snooze mode due to the two big plates of “carbs” they consumed. Strategic questions during your presentation is one way to keep your audience involved and interested. The risk is getting into a very productive discussion that could become off topic and may eat up more time than you planned for. You will need to monitor the time very closely when you ask questions during the presentation.
I guess a subsequent question to this is what tips can people offer to keep the timing on track when you open up the floor to questions and suggestions several times during your presentation?