- The way you handle a Q&A after presentations can really shape the way everybody looks at what you just said, so it's important to get it right. And in this video, we're going to look at how to handle direct questions with direct answers. 

Hello, I'm Alex Lyon, and this is Communication Coach, the channel that's here to help you increase your impact so you can lead your teams to higher levels of excellence. Today, we're going to unpack how to answer direct questions directly. Everything that I'm talking about in this video comes from a wonderful book by Allen Weiner. I will put the link in the description below. It's called So Smart But, and it's a fantastic communication and leadership book. I also know Allen. He was my mentor starting about 20 years ago, and really helped me get my start in the area of communication consulting. So thank you, Allen. 

When he talks about how to handle Q&A, he really describes it very simply in a way that I have found very helpful. He talks about how there are really only four types of questions, and he uses a testing metaphor to crystallize this. He says there are true/false, which is really a yes or no; multiple choice; fill in the blank; and essay. We're not going to go into how to answer essay questions. Those require a little more sophisticated style of answering. 

However, the first three questions are the most common, and they are all direct questions. And the tip is this-- direct questions require direct answers. You want to be concise. Concise sounds confident. Concise means about one sentence, sounds a little bit like the headline from a news article. So if you're asked a direct question, you give a direct answer to true/false, fill in the blank, or multiple choice. 

And there's an old scene from Hunt for Red October-- great movie-- and Alec Baldwin is playing Jack Ryan in this film, and he's getting some advice from James Earl Jones. Jack Ryan is about to give a briefing to some really high level people, and James Earl Jones says, you're liable to be asked some direct questions. Give them direct answers. 

- He's liable to ask some direct questions. Give him direct answers. 

- So when you're asked a yes/no, fill in the blank, or multiple choice, the first thing you have to do is listen and make sure you're hearing a direct question. And if you are, give one sentence. Give a yes or no or fill in the blank and then about one sentence worth of detail and then put a period at the end of it in your mind and then zip your mouth. And that gives room for the next question. 

So let's give a little quiz here. I'm going to give you three questions, varieties of the same question, really. And you tell me is this true/false, fill in the blank, or a multiple choice. OK, here we go. When can you have that project done? When questions are usually fill in the blank. You might say, for example, Wednesday looks like the best day for that project. You give an answer, a little bit of detail, period. 

Can you have that done by Monday? Now, you have to listen. Is it yes or no, multiple choice, or fill in the blank? Can you have it done by Monday? That's a yes or no. So you would say, no; however, I can have it done by Tuesday. You don't always have to say yes. Yes, I can have it done by Monday-- fine answer-- period. No; however-- if you need to qualify-- I can have it done by Tuesday. 

OK, last one. You probably already know which one it is. Does Monday work better for you or Wednesday for that project deadline? That's obviously a multiple choice-style question. So when you hear a direct question, give the answer and then about one sentence worth of detail. And by the way, a lot of times people think, oh my gosh, can I really just say yes or no? I mean, that's so committed. Well, remember, you have room to qualify. You don't have to say yes, 100%, yes, absolutely, yes. You can say yes, however or no, however, yes because. You can give some qualifications and a little bit of detail, but make sure you still stick to about one sentence worth of length there and put a period at the end and then zip it. That's really the key. 

Now, sometimes people overcorrect, and you do not want to overcorrect and just give one-word answers. There are a number of very well-known sports coaches that you can tell they do not like talking to the media. 

- What happened offensively in that period? 

- Turnovers. 

- What about on the defensive end? They had their most productive quarter. What did you see there? 

- Turnovers. 

- Pop, thank you. Mike. 

- And that's it. And that sounds like you're blowing people off. You don't want to talk to them. But in my experience, if you give a about a sentence and put a period there, people love it because you're answering their question. And that's really why they're asking it. They want an answer. And it really opens up a key aspect to the Q&A portion after a presentation. 

When you did your presentation, that's an opportunity for you to monologue. You get your chance to talk directly at them for quite a while. Once it goes to Q&A, people want a dialogue, and so concise answers allow for lots of back and forth, lots of turn taking. And that's very satisfying for listeners, for members of an audience. And so if you can do that, you will really come across as a master at Q&A. 

So again, I highly recommend Alan Weiner's book. Again, the link is in the description below. You can probably get used copies for almost nothing, plus shipping. So go ahead and order that. And so thanks, God bless, and until next time, I hope you get to use the tips in this video after your very next presentation.