Dealing with questions 3

Here are some ways of dealing with questions when you are the SPEAKER:

When you don't want to answer:

• To be honest, I'm not really the person to ask about that.

When someone interrupts you:

• Sorry, could I just finish?

When you finally understand what they want to know:

• Oh I see. So what you are asking is …

When you realise they don't understand what you said:

• Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. What I was trying to say was …

If you don't want to tell everyone:

• Perhaps we can talk about it when I have finished.

To close off the presentation:

• If there are no more questions, we should stop there.

Here are some ways of getting an answer when you are the QUESTIONER:

When the answer doesn't give you the information you want:

• Yes, that may be so, but what I want to know is …

When the answer is evasive:

• Yes, but you still haven't answered my question.

If you are sceptical and want more detail:

• Well, I'm not so sure. Can you give us an example to illustrate that?

If you don't agree:

• That may be so, but I still think ...