How to Ace Your Next Q&A

A founder I know gave a great presentation at the first townhall of 2026 – followed by a shambolic Q&A.

The team asked about the company’s strategic direction, innovation in the pipeline, AI, developments in the industry – basically the stuff you’d expect.

When he asked “any questions?” … there was awkward silence. When the questions finally rolled in, he gave long, rambling answers.

What’s more: his body language lacked confidence. He sometimes moved away from the audience when asked a tough question.

True, Q&A sessions challenge even confident speakers. It’s the one part you can’t control.

The mistake I often see is that leaders try to control the Q&A, for instance by filtering messages, but that's a fallacy. Tough questions don't go away if you avoid them.

It's much better to know how to deal with tough questions than trying to dodge them. Here’s how:

1/ Shift from threat to opportunity

Don’t view questions as threats. Treat them as opportunities. Your audience isn’t your opponent. It’s your partner in clarity.

2/ Prep your top 10 questions

Ask: “What questions will I get?” Write them down and practice your answers.

3/ Set the frame

Don’t say: “Does anyone have any questions?” Instead, open with: “We’ve got time for 3 or 4 questions.” Framing gives you authority and guides the flow.

4/ Avoid rambling

One message. One example. Stop talking. Rambling is the fastest way to lose credibility.

5/ Step toward the questioner

Move towards the audience to engage the room. Open posture, eye contact, and steady tone.

6/ Buy yourself time

If needed, rephrase the question: “If I understand correctly, you're asking…” Only say “That’s a great question” when it really is.

7/ Say this if you don’t know the answer

“This would lead us on a tangent – let’s take it offline.” Or: “I don’t know off the top of my head, but I’ll follow up.”

8/ Prime the pump

If no hands go up, say: “A common question I get is…” Or: “I have a question for you.”

9/ End with impact

Say: “Thank you”, then repeat your key message. Don’t let someone else’s question be your final impression.

You can't control what others ask you, but you do control how you respond. Learn to thrive in that uncertainty and see how the respect for you as a leader keeps growing.

ON THE SHOW

The One Leadership Skill AI Can’t Learn

I do a weekly show to help you become a top 1% communicator. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple, or Youtube.

As long as business remains dynamic, AI is always going to get crushed by human intelligence.

That’s according to Angus Fletcher, Professor of Story Science and bestselling author of Primal Intelligence (my book of the year).

This conversation broke my mental model. His research reveals that story isn't just a communication skill – it’s a form of intelligence that is 500 million years old.

Angus unpacks what makes leaders distinctive, how internal and external stories work, and why aligning the three stories every business runs on is non-negotiable.

And if you still think storytelling is a soft skill, Angus works closely with US Special Forces, helping elite operators make decisions in dynamic, high-risk environments where failure isn’t an option.

Which sounds a lot like leadership to me.

Watch and listen to the full episode here:

BOOK RECOMMENDATION

The Subtle Art of Not Saying Everything You Mean

Steven Pinker is a Harvard cognitive psychologist and one of the world’s leading thinkers on language and human behavior. Few people are better equipped to explain how communication really works in high-stakes social situations.

His new book tackles a deceptively simple idea: communication isn’t just about what people know, but about what everyone knows that everyone knows. That concept - common knowledge – turns out to be central to leadership, persuasion, and influence.

What stood out for me is “Strategic speaker theory” - it explains how leaders coordinate without cornering people.

Strategic speaker theory explains why leaders often choose how explicit to be. Too direct, and you force commitment or refusal. Too vague, and nothing moves.

If I say to Mike on my team, “It would be great if this report could get done before Monday,” I’ve expressed a preference – not a command. Mike can reply, “I’d love to help, but I’m tied up this weekend.”

Notice what this achieves:

I didn’t force Mike to say “no.”
He didn’t force me to escalate.
No one looks uncommitted or unreasonable.
I can now ask someone else, shift priorities, or accept the delay.

This isn’t weak communication – it’s strategic. Both sides preserve face, and the work still moves forward.

Pinker's deeper point is that plausible deniability isn’t about manipulation – it’s about keeping cooperation possible. Make everything explicit too early, and you turn coordination into confrontation. By leaving some things unsaid, leaders give people room to adapt, decline, or step up voluntarily.

Have an inspired weekend,

Oliver