You're new to public speaking and facing Q&A sessions. How can you handle them effectively?

Best advice I ever received was from the eminent Canadian palaeontologist W.G.E. Caldwell who reminded me that the presenter should be the expert, and the expert should know more than just what they are presenting on. Make this your true north and you should be able to field most questions. Occasionally you’ll get a question that stumps you - acknowledge it and promise to circle back with an answer once you dig in to the data after your talk. Finally, sometimes you may draw a blank on questions about facts and figures that you know inside and out and can recite easily when relaxed. Preparing a cheat sheet for some key data points may be helpful if you are worried that you might gap when under a bit of stress and pressure.

Preparation isn’t always possible in a live Q&A - as you simply never know what the audience is going to come up with. From your experience in your field, you may already know what the regular questions are going to be - the things you often get asked - but from 30+ years of handling live panel sessions I never cease to be surprised at what can come up. That shouldn’t overly concern you - trust your knowledge and experience. Audiences rarely sit in judgement on you - unless you’re a stand up comedian - they want to hear your viewpoint - so be confident in your understanding of your topic.

Listenning is the key to answer after understanding the question As if you are presenting or delivering a lecture you have sound grip on the topic but how precisely u respond is the key

Mastery of the subject matter is an important skill in public speaking,it imbues confidence and allows the speaker express himself with a certainty that convinces others. Connecting with the audience allows the speaker gauge the impact of his speech and how he/she is doing.Public speaking is a form of enlightenment and thus the speaker must be aware of his audience's perception and reaction to his talk.This also gives the speaker feedback from their body language to know how to improve as he speaks.

1. Anticipate and prepare by writing out the potential questions & 1 point answer. See if you can relate it back to any point in your presentation. 2. Expect and prepare for questions related to likely parts of your presentation & mentally be ready to add further clarification.

Listen carefully ??. As a public speaker ??, it's crucial to be a good listener ?? and understand questions thoroughly ??. This ensures that your responses are relevant and accurate ??. Stay calm and take your time to think before answering ?. Engaging with your audience and addressing their concerns effectively will enhance your credibility and effectiveness as a speaker ??.

There are instances where audience members don’t go to the front of the stage to ask their questions, so maintaining proper body language is important. Make eye contact, maintain proper posture that is facing them, and nod as they go and share their question to you. I make sure to ask the audience member’s name so that I get to address them personally.

Pay close attention to each question to ensure you understand it fully before responding. This not only shows respect for the person asking but also helps you provide a clear and relevant answer

This is the most important step,in order to be a good speaker,one has to be a good listener at first. Listening helps in understanding how to use the language tone as per the audience and use proper expressions as per the topic and the audience.

While delivering a speech is important, it is more important to listen to the audience to make it better. The interaction becomes better when you listen carefully. In doing that, you can make the conversation even better and fluid.

It's natural to feel nervous, but take a deep breath and give yourself a moment to think before answering. Remember, it's okay not to have all the answers. If you don’t know something, admit it and offer to follow up later.

Let me challenge that. Keeping a calm pace while delivering an engaging speech is a trait only a few gifted speakers possess. In my opinion, changing the speech pace, volume, and tone could keep a more attentive audience for most non-natural speakers, including myself.

It is absolutely OK to say you don't know, or are not sure, or that you need to do research. It does not diminish your authority to admit the limits of your knowledge.

Depending on the organizers they may allow “planter” questions if you’re very nervous. This means audience members don’t get to ask live questions. You can also consider using a tool like Slido to help ensure questions are relevant to the audience ??

This is one of the most important and essential elements of public speaking. Of course, initially the speaker does feel nervous, but once he/she starts the session, that person gradually comes in the element and all the efforts are pressed into for attention from the audience and nervousness vanishes. Only way the speaker has to be calm,cool and composed,this is the main mantra for a good speaker.

Treat Q&A sessions like an impromptu chat at a lively party rather than a tense interrogation. Embrace the chaos with a confident pause to gather your thoughts, and dance around tricky questions with grace. Use stories to spice up your answers and don’t sweat it if you don’t know everything—just be real about it and offer to follow up. Engage with your audience like you’re having a good conversation, and you’ll turn those Q&A moments into your personal spotlight.

Q&A are meant be to interactive and insightful. Even at some times if you don't have any knowledge about the question asked, be honest and tell the audience that you don't know about it This creates a good impression and this will not belittle you Learning is the key no matter if you learn from the audience or vice-versa!

I do agree that there’s nothing wrong with saying that you don’t know something. My favorite approach is to ask the asker to keep this question for later because I will address the topic. Most chance that they will forget their question or will be busy thinking when it was addressed.

Be honest. I feel no shame in saying when I do not know something. Answer honestly with what you know. Your preparation coupled with honesty is the key to acing any Q and A session.

It’s OK if you do not have the answers to all questions asked, especially if they are situation-specific. In times like these, I candidly admit that I am not an expert in the area of concern that they are asking about, although I can offer my personal opinion about it based on my current amount of knowledge in the hope of helping them understand the situation better.

Teamwork! Ask colleagues who have addressed the same audience what the crowd needs or has challenges with. Do a “dummy” run with colleagues. Anticipate the questions! Though no question should come as a surprise , never be scared to say “Thank you. I don’t know the answer, but I’ll find out and get back to you.” Then follow up on your word. If someone is taking over, hogging question time for their own agenda, move it on politely with “We have limited time John, so perhaps we two could catch up afterwards? We have lots more questions in the room, but I very much look forward to us speaking later.”

Q&A is a natural progression in speaking. Celebrate! The audience was listening and engaged. Listen to question and answer succinctly with tie-back to presentation. Have fun and allow this to be interactive, engaging and a lead to audience continued growth and development.

I like to joke that Q&As are my favorite part of lectures because I get to practice for Miss Universe! Being humorous during this less formal part of the event allows the audience to feel less intimidated to ask questions, and I often encourage my audience to ask anything that they want to know, never mind whether they think it’s ‘stupid’ or not. Any sort of question always provides everyone with an opportunity to learn.

Ask follow-up questions to keep the conversation going. By engaging your audience, you create a more dynamic and interactive session, making everyone feel more involved

When engaging your audience, it's also important to set norms and manage expectations on the front end. You could be the most knowledgeable person in the room and have the best presentation and reference material, but if expectations are not set at the beginning, it is very easy to deviate from the core goal of the conversation and purpose for the q&a in the first place. It is hard to get off course when you are the one driving, you set the destination based on the audience in front of you, and you're very aware of the environment around you.