The second in my series of asking questions. I some folks have messaged me there reasons why people don’t ask questions after a presentation. Thank you for those. I have captured them below:
- Lack of confidence: Some people may lack confidence or feel intimidated to ask questions in a public setting. They may worry about how their question will be perceived or fear being judged by others.
- Unclear on what to ask: Others may not ask questions simply because they are unclear on what to ask. They may feel overwhelmed by the amount of information presented or unsure of which direction to take their questions.
- Time constraints: Sometimes there may be time constraints that limit the amount of time available for questions. In these cases, people may feel hesitant to take up time with their own questions and instead opt to ask them later or not at all.
- Assumed understanding: Some people may assume that they have already understood everything that was presented and therefore do not feel the need to ask questions.
- Fear of appearing uninformed: Finally, some people may avoid asking questions because they fear that it will make them appear uninformed or unprepared. They may feel pressure to know everything already and be hesitant to reveal any knowledge gaps.
Inspired by Maria B who messaged me on LinkedIn I though of things we could do to be more encouraging:
To encourage more questions after a presentation, it can be helpful to create a welcoming and safe environment for attendees to ask questions. The presenter can explicitly encourage questions and reassure the audience that there are no “stupid” questions and mean it. Additionally, the presenter can provide prompts or examples of potential questions to help attendees get started. Finally, providing time and space for attendees to reflect on the presentation and formulate their questions can also be helpful.
Sea's The Day 