Perfect Pitch: "Does anyone have a question?"

I have some background in standup comedy, and the ability to talk well in front of an audience has always fascinated me. What’s especially interesting is how a speaker handles hostility. 

This doesn’t come only from “hecklers” in comedy clubs. You can encounter this anywhere, whether it’s a middle school parents meeting or a corporate board of directors.

Whenever you speak in front of a group of people, you’re continually trying to win them over to our way of thinking. That’s especially true when taking questions. So what’s the best way to go about this?

The first step in responding to a question should be to understand what’s on the person’s mind and looking for a common ground of agreement. Answers flow easily when you and the questioner are in sync and when you display a sincere interest in what that person is trying to express. This sincere interest will have a far more lasting impression than any content of what you say. Yet the tendency is to unload your own opinions before you do anything else.

Flat out defiance of a hostile questioner is always a difficult temptation to overcome. Once you’ve entered that mode, it’s very hard to get out of it. Later you may feel that the stance you adopted was ill advised, but for the moment you’ll be stuck with it. So don’t go there in the first place. Think about what you’re doing and saying rather than just reacting to what’s being said to you.

One of the greatest mistakes you can make is to lose your composure in a pressure situation – especially you’re talking about important issues. Even if your outward composure doesn’t obviously falter, you never want it give even a hint that you have anything but the highest confidence in your ideas, in your ability to present them, and in yourself.

So how is that confidence displayed? Being brash and defensive
sends exactly the wrong message. Be firm and forceful, but also
face the challenge of being open when you’re uncertain about a
specific point. There are times when “I just don’t know” is the best
answer – especially when it’s obvious that you really don’t.