The Problem With Asking “Any Questions?”

The last PowerPoint slide in a presentation often coincides with a very predictable closing from the presenter:

“Any questions?”

This often results in an equally predictable silence.

Presenters and instructors tend to interpret this silence as evidence that the audience understood the information.

But have they really? Don’t drop the mic just yet.

There are a variety of reasons why there will be no questions at the end of a presentation (particularly at the end of the day) that have nothing to do with audience comprehension. Specifically:

 

·       It’s finally over. (Miller Time!) No one wants to linger after a presentation
is clearly finished. Want to see the “death stare?” Watch the way other
audience members glare at that fellow in the back who had the audacity to raise
his hand and ask that last tedious question. It is pure animosity!

 

·       They are lost: At this point the audience may be so confused,
disinterested, or overwhelmed that they are incapable of asking a question.
They do not know what to ask.

 

·       Loss of face: Most people are reluctant to draw attention to themselves
for their lack of understanding. E.g., “Am I the only one not getting this?”
They will ask someone in private or look up the answer later rather than betraying
their own ignorance.

 

·       Passive norm.
This may be the first interaction initiated by the presenter after a lengthy
lecture or PowerPoint presentation and the audience is unaccustomed to anyone
speaking other than the presenter.

 

·       False confidence: The audience may think they understand, but the
presenter has no data to confirm this. All the presenter knows for sure is that
no one is asking questions.

 

·       Conditioning. The audience has learned, over time, that “any questions?” usually signals the end. Skeptical?  Here is an experiment you can
try: At the end of your next presentation, ask “any questions?” and listen
carefully. You will hear notebooks closing, chairs sliding backwards, and a
general stirring as people pack up and make ready to leave. In fact, if a
fire ever breaks out in your meeting room, rather than yelling “fire!”, yell
“any questions?” They will be out of the room faster.

For these reasons, asking “any questions?” is a very unreliable way of getting feedback from your audience. There are too many reasons why no questions will be forthcoming. This also includes many variations of “any questions?”, including:

“Is that clear?”

“Are you following?”

“Everybody getting this?”

This is not to suggest that you should never ask “any questions?” Sometimes, someone does indeed have a very good question that they’ve been waiting to ask. The key is not to depend upon it.

To get more reliable feedback, consider:

·       Interacting with your audience. Periodically ask questions like:

 

“Can someone give me an example of this?”

 

“How would you describe this in your own words?”

 

“Here is a hypothetical situation…how would you handle it?”

 

This not only gives you a steady stream of feedback, but also creates an interactive atmosphere in the room, making it more likely that audience members will ask their own questions when they have them.

 

·       Rephrasing the question. Rather than asking “any questions?”, consider
asking “Is there something I can explain further?” or “Is there anything you’d
like me to elaborate on?” These questions do not require audience members to
admit they don’t understand…simply, that they would like more information.

 

·       A dedicated discussion time. Let the audience know in advance that
you have allotted a specific period of time at the end of the presentation for
discussion. Your last PowerPoint slide should say “discussion” rather than “any
questions?”

 

Any questions?

The Great Online Training Debate: Webcams On or Off?

Whether you are chatting online with relatives from Nebraska, brainstorming with colleagues, or meeting with your team, there is no question that webcams can add a welcome visual component. Experts tell us that over half of communication is non-verbal and seeing the person or persons with whom you are exchanging information can enhance the quality of the conversation.

However, does this also apply to training? If you are presenting important information that must be learned and remembered, do webcams make the same contribution?

Experienced online instructors have advanced persuasive arguments on both sides:

 

Webcam “Pros”

Having webcams on:

-Ensures that attendees are physically present.

-Helps ensure that attendees are paying attention; it is harder to multitask or drift when you are visible on camera.

-Allows the instructor to direct questions to, or otherwise assist, attendees who look disengaged or confused.

-Helps create a feeling of “connectedness” and being together with other people. Experts say this aids learning and contributes to participant satisfaction.

-Allows the instructor to perform demonstrations, observe student practice and provide feedback

 

Webcam “Cons”:

-Watching multiple people and backgrounds (including yours) can distract from the subject matter of the training.

-Seeing visual images of people and backgrounds introduces additional stimuli, leading to potential cognitive overload.

-Maintaining prolonged eye-contact with multiple people is intense and unnatural, leading to feelings of anxiety. This is sometimes referred to as “Zoom Fatigue.”

-Research says that viewing yourself on camera for long periods, similar to staring into a mirror, can be stressful. Most people tend to look at themselves very critically.

-Staying immobile within the camera’s limited field of view is not natural and can be fatiguing. Consider how much you move when having a phone-only conversation.

-Webcams use significant bandwidth and can introduce technical and connectivity issues.

 

Possible Solution:

Many online instructors are finding that webcam use is not an “all or nothing” proposition. If possible, they will instruct attendees to activate webcams at two points:

1. At the beginning of the session to help break the ice and create the feeling of interpersonal connectedness between attendees. This also serves to humanize the instructor and prevent that person from being simply a disembodied voice.

2. Periodically during the session and/or at the conclusion when discussing key points, brainstorming, Q & A, or when viewing a hands-on demonstration by the instructor or practices by the students.

On the other hand, the instructor will direct attendees to deactivate their webcams during the actual instruction. This is when the attendees need to be exclusively focused on the information appearing on their screens, along with the instructor’s explanation. There is no known instructional value in watching other people’s faces, or your own, while you are attempting to
learn and remember key learning points.

Webcam deactivation during instruction, however, does not imply that students should be passive observers of the event. Research is clear that learning and retention always require active mental processing on the part of the students. Using commonly available online engagement tools like hand-raising, polling, chat activities, screen annotation, and breakout rooms can add this required activity, as well as providing feedback to the instructor
that students are attentive and learning.

Webcams are yet another tool in your instructional toolbox. Used at the right time, for the right reason, they can add significant value to a live online instructional session.

How to Handle Sleeping Participants

Imagine that you are presenting in a warm conference room or classroom, not long after lunch (pizza), and are covering data displayed on PowerPoint slide #47. You notice an attendee on the second row, after a valiant struggle to stay awake, finally surrender and nod off to sleep.

What action should you take? Here are some suggested do’s and don’ts.

Do not:

·   Embarrass or target the sleeper. It is tempting to do this because we, as presenters,feel like we are being disrespected or subjected to rude behavior.  But consider, haven’t we all, at one time or another, struggled to stay awake in a meeting? Plus, there may be a very legitimate reason why the attendee is sleeping…perhaps they were up all night with a sick child, checked into their hotel room at 2 a.m. because of flight delays, are on medication, worked the  night shift, or similar. It is very inappropriate to subject these people to punitive or derisive comments or actions.

 

·    Lower the temperature of the room to arctic conditions. I have heard some presenters say, “I know my material is boring so I’ll make it so cold in the room that it is impossible to sleep.” The problem with this is that it is difficult to understand and remember key points when you are  focused on your own physical discomfort. I once encountered an attendee in the men’s restroom who was huddled beside the hot air hand dryer attempting to restore feeling to his extremities. It was not an environment conducive to learning and retention.

 

Do:

 

·    Be a dynamic presenter and move around the room. Sometimes the change in your volume as you casually approach a sleeper is enough to rouse them from their slumber.

  

·    Ask a question of someone sitting near the sleeper. The sound of that voice may jolt the sleeper back to consciousness and alert them that they could be the recipient of the next question.

 

·    Take an impromptu, spontaneous break. All of the research from neuroscience and cognitive psychology suggests that shorter, frequent breaks are better for learning and retention than a single longer break in the middle of the morning or afternoon. Human beings did not evolve to sit motionless in meeting rooms for hours at a time.

 

If you notice one or more heads starting to nod, feel free to say something like, “Ok, we’ve been at this a while and the information is critical. Let’s take a quick five-minute break, grab some coffee, and have back at it!”

 

·    Take preemptive measures. Sometimes the problem is not with the attendees, but with you.  For example, if possible:

 

o  Do not schedule inherently passive activities like videos and long PowerPoint presentations right after lunch

 

o  If using PowerPoint or other presentation software, make your slides more visual than verbal. Add some pictures and reduce the text. Nothing induces sleep more quickly than a luminescent wall of words.

 

o  Configure the tables into a u-shape rather than theater-style, so everyone is sitting on the “front row.”

 

o Make the session more interactive. Embed questions, discussions, group activities, brainstorming, and similar. Keep people mentally and physically active. As wise mentor of mine once said, “Talking students don’t sleep.”

 

How to Handle Side Conversations During a Presentation

I could tell that the presenter was about to lose it. There had been intermittent side conversations going on between audience members for most of the morning, and the presenter’s facial expression betrayed his increasing annoyance.

Finally, it happened.

 “Excuse me, can we have just one person talking in here at a time?!!” he said sharply and glared at the group.

A deathly, uncomfortable silence descended over the room and remained there for the duration of his presentation.

That’s the thing about adults. When confronted or embarrassed, they can easily shut down from that point forward. The key to handling side conversations (and other adult problem behaviors) are subtle, non-confrontational tactics.

So, what to do?

First, before you act to suppress a side conversation, make sure it would be in your best interest to do so. It has been my experience that many side conversations are actually topical. Perhaps you, the presenter, have just made an interesting or perplexing point and two people turn to each other to discuss it. If you have reason to believe this is the case, consider soliciting the side conversation. Use a question like: “Was there an additional issue?” or “Is there anything I can clarify?” Sometimes the whole room can benefit from a shared side conversation.

Also be aware that if you are teaching or presenting to persons who have your language as a second language or who are from different countries and cultures, they may need side conversations to clarify unfamiliar terminology. In that case, you should welcome this activity, because it means that your audience is interested enough to try to understand what you are saying.

Assuming, however, the side conversation is not contributing to your presentation, here are five strategies that may work:

Body positioning:

Dynamic presenters often move purposefully around the room rather than remaining stationary at the projector or lectern.  Therefore, in a casual, seemingly non-targeted way, approach the persons having the conversation. Not only does this position you in their immediate proximity, but also directs the attention of the room to the that location.

Questioning:

Good presenters aspire to frequent interaction with their audiences. Consider directing your next few questions to persons sitting in the vicinity of the conversationalists. They will get the message that the next question could easily be to one of them.

Silence:

To avoid “information overload”, good presenters often pause during their presentations to give audience members a chance to process and absorb important points. A well-timed silence might be just the thing to draw attention to the side conversation.

Table configuration:

Classic “theater style” or traditional classrooms feature multiple rows of tables, with some audience members sitting many tables away from the presenter… a very safe place to engage in conversation. Where possible, consider a u-shape table arrangement so that everyone is in the “front of the room.”

Engagement:

Side conversations sometimes occur because the audience is so bored or disinterested, they have
nothing better to do. Consider engaging your audience with stories, questions, compelling visuals, group activities, and similar. Make your presentation so interesting that a side conversation is a much less attractive alternative.

One last point. When you put adults in a confined space like a conference room or classroom, they do tend to talk to each other. It is a natural and spontaneous occurrence. Sometimes we presenters just need to take a deep breath and not over-react.

Interacting with Large Audiences; How to Keep the Whole Ballroom Awake

Sometimes, in my train the trainer or presentation skills workshops, I receive a bit of push-back regarding my advocacy of frequent interaction with an audience.

Although the evidence is clear that interaction has multiple benefits (e.g., keeps people attentive, provides feedback to the presenter, enhances retention, etc.), some will suggest that this only works with small groups. What if, they say, I am dealing with a larger number…maybe 80, 100, 500 or more…maybe at a conference, a convention, or company-wide meeting. Clearly there is no way I can ask questions of a group that size.

Is this true? Must you revert to just talking and showing PowerPoint slides? Here are some strategies that work:

Low Tech Options:

1. The “Jerry Springer” Approach: Fearlessly walk down the aisles with a microphone and direct questions to individuals and tables. (This used to be called the Phil Donahue approach but only a few of us are old enough to remember…).

2. The Hand-Raise Approach: Directing closed-ended questions to the entire audience that typically call for a show of hands. The presenter “prompts” the response by raising his or her hand as the questions are asked. Different types include:

Questions calling for agreement or a conclusion (useful for building consensus and/or transitioning to the next topic). For example:

“Would it be reasonable, then, to conclude that it is critical to improve last quarter’s sales numbers? How many say yes?” (Show of hands).

“So, are we all generally in agreement that the new quality initiative needs to be actively supported at the supervisory level? How many would agree?” (Show of hands).

Questions calling for common experience. For example:

“So, how many of you have heard this objection?” (show of hands)

“Do any of your customers fit this description?” (show of hands)

3.  Verbal multiple choice questions (polling) that cause the audience to speculate on the correct answer or share their feelings. For example:

“A recent economic forecast suggests that residential housing starts will increase next quarter. Let’s see if your feelings match the forecast…How many think they will increase by less than 5%? (show of hands). How many think between 5 and 10%? (show of hands). How about over 10%? (show of hands). Well some of you are exactly in line with the forecast, which said…”

3. Pair, triad, or table activities. For example:

“Working with the person sitting next to you, try to agree on the best solution to this problem.” (Debrief: “Anyone want to share your idea? How about you there on the 3rd row, on the far left…?”).
Or
“Take a moment and, working with people at your table, jot down what you consider to be 3 characteristics of a good leader.” (Debrief: “Here is a slide which lists the characteristics that our Executive Leadership Committee came up with. How many tables matched at least 1? How about 2?” or ” Can someone give me one of your 3? Good! How many other tables had that one?”).
4. Interactive Handouts. These are documents provided to audience members as they arrive or distributed in advance and placed on each table or seat. These handouts are missing key words and phrases that participants are responsible for completing as the presentation moves along. Not only do people stay alert waiting for the next missing piece of information, but by writing them down, they enhance their retention.
High Tech Options:
There are a wide variety of “Audience Response Systems” (ARS) available for purchase or rent. These are hand-held devices that allow audiences to respond to questions from the presenter by pressing keys or entering data and typically seeing the results displayed on the screen in the front of the room. Some require specific hardware which connects to one or more “base stations” in the room, and others are internet-based which allow the use of smartphones, tablets or similar. Simply Google: “Audience Response Systems” to see the range of options. Resources and logistics permitting, these might be the ultimate solution to the challenge of keeping larger audiences immersed in a presentation.
This is not an exhaustive list of large audience involvement strategies, but shows that interaction is not a function of group size. With a little creativity, any presentation can be made thought-provoking and engaging.

How Presentations are like Amoebas (and what to do about it)

Trainers and presenters, particularly those who are experts in their fields, have long struggled with selecting the right content for a presentation. How much is too much? How deep do I go? Where do I stop?
Unfortunately, what often happens is analogous to something that many of us witnessed in high school biology class. Do you recall the lab activity where your biology teacher put a warm drop of pond water on a slide, and, through a microscope, you got to see what actually lives in pond water? As you focused the lens, a translucent amoeba appeared, shimmering and pulsating in the light. If you watched long enough, a smaller pond organism floated into view, and, when it approached the amoeba too closely, it was enveloped by the amoeba, causing the amoeba to grow slightly in size. Sometime later, a second micro-organism drifted past and, sure enough, it was consumed by the amoeba which again expanded its own dimensions.
The same thing often happens when presentations are put together.  Tantalizing bits of content (facts, anecdotes, related topics, stories, statistics) drift through the presenter’s mind and are captured and included in the presentation. These pieces of information have been referred to as “seductive detail.” And the presentation expands in a random and unpredictable way, getting larger and larger…
This is sometimes called the “amoeba design process.”
What’s the problem with the amoeba? According to cognitive scientists, people have a very limited capacity in short-term memory and are easily overwhelmed with information. When that happens, we enter a state called “cognitive overload” and the brain’s processing literally shuts down. As if that’s not enough, we also have a very short attention span and tend to forget things very quickly. It is therefore in the vital, vested interest of a presenter to include the least information necessary to achieve the objectives of a presentation.
According to noted cognitive scientist Dr. Ruth Clark: 
“While my early lectures included just about everything I knew, I quickly realized that content covered does not translate into content learned. Participants would leave these bloated sessions feeling overwhelmed and demotivated rather than energized. I needed to do some drastic trimming and leave participants with additional follow-up resources to pursue at a later time…”
So, how to kill the amoeba? Two simple steps:
1) Be very specific about your objective. By the end of the presentation, the audience 
    should be able to know or do what?
2) Include the least content necessary to achieve it.
We’ve actually known this for a long time. According to Francois Fenelon in the 1600s:
“The more you say, the less people remember.”

How to Take the Floor Away from Someone Who Won’t Stop Talking

Good trainers, presenters and facilitators know the importance of audience participation. The experts tell us that audience participation sustains attention and interest, provides feedback that people are “getting it”, and enhances the retention of key points.

But, what about the dark side of participation? Specifically, when an audience member answers a question or otherwise obtains the floor, and is talking way too long; rambling, elaborating, elucidating, or tell a story, and is basically eating through your limited presentation time. How can you cut them off without confronting or embarrassing them?
In my experience, there are two strategies that have worked particularly well:
1) Breath-point intervention. There is a biological fact about people who talk too long…they do breathe. Watch closely for that slight pause, jump in, and do one of two things:
One, since they seem incapable of concluding, you conclude for them. For example, “So, Roger, what you are telling us is…” or “In essence, Samantha, your main point would be…” With any luck, they will agree with your synopsis, and you have successfully re-gained the floor.
A second “breath-point” intervention would be to take the “conversational ball” away from them and toss it to someone else. For example: “Interesting approach, Rick. Ahmed, have you ever tried that?” or “Sue, what’s your reaction to Jim’s experience?” If this works according to plan, you have now given the floor to someone less verbose, allowing you to quickly jump into the driver’s seat and proceed.
2) Blame it on the agenda. This works best if you set it up at the beginning of the session. Specifically, alert the audience that you are dealing with important information and a limited time frame. Consider saying something like: “O.K., we have some critical topics to cover and I know from past experience we are likely to get into some interesting discussions. However, you may occasionally hear me call a “time out” which means that, although we may talk further at breaks or at lunch, we’ve got to move on at this point or I’ll never get you out by 5 p.m.”
Using this approach, you are blaming the agenda for any interventions, not the substance or quality of what the talkative person is saying. You have set the audience up to expect or even anticipate interventions.

How to Survive in Front of a Group

You’ve seen the data. Survey after survey, going back decades, suggests that public speaking is people’s greatest fear. Called “glossophobia”, it consistently beats spiders, snakes, flying, and even death in the lexicon of least favorite things. (e.g., “Kill me, just don’t make me stand up and say anything…”).

As a train-the-trainer seminar leader, I have spent almost 25 years helping subject matter experts, managers, and other aspiring speakers overcome this fear, and I’ve witnessed every imaginable manifestation of it. Prior to giving a presentation, I’ve seen people break into hives, lose their voices, become faint, claim to be having a heart attack, and have had two pregnant attendees go into early labor.
How to overcome this fear? The literature on this subject typically promotes some very familiar solutions: deep breathing, practice in a mirror, meditation, positive visualization, imagine your audience naked, (not recommended if you work with engineers) and others.
Not to discount the above, but in my experience, there are two solutions that work consistently with even the most terrified presenters:
1) Get into the room early and chat with audience members. Wander over to wherever the coffee is, and discuss traffic, weather, sports, or whatever topics naturally arise. By the time you stand up to formally begin, you will have neutralized (at least in your own mind) your relationship with the audience and created a sense of community.
2) Once you do begin, ask the audience a question very quickly. Specifically, a question which calls for a verbal response (e.g., “Who can define…?” or “What would be your reaction to…?” or similar.).  Once someone else in the room begins to speak, your brain thinks that you are having a conversation rather than giving a speech, which is a very familiar mode for all of us. I have seen presenters who were literally paralyzed with fright, visibly relax at the sound of another voice in the room. It also creates an interactive atmosphere and sets the stage for further audience engagement.
Bottom line: A little work before and at the beginning of a presentation will go a long way towards freeing you from (or at least reducing) the burden of speaking anxiety.

Audiovisual Purgatory

Presentation software (and PowerPoint® specifically) is the target of heavy criticism these days. The phrase “Death by PowerPoint®” is commonly used to describe the abuse of this medium: Too many slides, too many words, annoying animations, bizarre color choices, gratuitous graphics, etc.

However, lest we despair, it is useful to remember what preceded PowerPoint® and dominated corporate training sessions and meetings for several decades: the overhead projector.

You can still find them if you look hard enough. Sometimes gathering dust in a forgotten corner of the company storeroom; perhaps hidden under a stack of Styrofoam cups in a supply cabinet. Then, if you are old enough to remember, it all comes back:

The slightly key-stoned image on the tippy portable screen, brilliant in the center, faded on the sides. The roar of the exhaust fan laboring to cool a 750-watt halogen lamp that made the projector hot enough to cook waffles. The horror on the faces of the audience when they first walked into the room and saw the towering stack of transparencies that were scheduled to be shown. The horror on the presenter’s face after accidently toppling that same stack of transparencies onto the floor and frantically trying to re-sequence them. As a presenter, staring into the blinding light as you annotated with an erasable pen, then glancing at your audience and seeing nothing but a big blue dot and the certain on-set of macular degeneration. And finally, the sizzling pop of the bulb burning out and the whole wretched enterprise fading to black.

Yes, we should all learn to use PowerPoint® in a more interactive, engaging, and effective way. But believe me, there are worse things.

The Wisdom of Frequent Breaks

We’ve all been there. Mid-morning in an overly air-conditioned corporate or hotel meeting room. Mind wandering, bladder painful, left leg asleep, minutes crawling by. Then…salvation! The welcome rumble of the 10 a.m. break cart rolling down the hallway.

The traditional 15 minute break in the morning and corresponding 15-minute break at mid-afternoon have been hallmarks of meetings and training sessions since the industrial revolution. Happily, there is a growing body of evidence which suggests that sitting passively for long periods of time is counter-productive and actually depresses concentration, learning, and retention. Shorter, more frequent breaks are gradually becoming the norm.
Consider:
  • Physical activity washes the brain with oxygen and increases cognitive capacity.
  • Anthropologists tell us that our evolutionary ancestors walked as many as 12 miles per day. We have not yet adapted to sitting motionless for hours.
  • Cognitive psychologists tell us that people tend to remember the beginnings and ends of things. Logically, the more beginnings and ends you have, the more opportunity for retention.
  • Pauses between segments allow for reflection, which facilitates the movement of information from short-term to long-term memory.
  • Cell phone addicts will less tempted to sneak a text or email because they know that the next break is never very far away.
  • The acute biological discomfort of a full bladder usually trumps any intellectual interest you may have in the topic.
The evidence for shorter, more frequent breaks s compelling. In fact, you’ve read enough…go take a break!