140. Rethinks: How to Handle a Skeptical Audience

Preparing to speak in front of a skeptical audience is more than thinking about objections beforehand – there are specific techniques you can use to respond to these challenging situations without sounding defensive, evasive, or dismissive. Here, we offer a few key tips for how to handle skepticism with aplomb.

In this episode, host Matt Abrahams and Stanford GSB lecturer Burt Alper share how to prepare for these challenges from your audience and discuss the importance of tactics like acknowledging audience input, reframing responses, and how to remain cool, collected, and credible.

Episode Reference Links:

• Burt Alper
• Ep.102 Create a Presence: How to Communicate in a Way Others Can Feel
• Ep.70 Keep ’Em Coming: Why Your First Ideas Aren’t Always the Best
• Original Episode: Ep.5 From Monologue to Dialogue: How to Handle a Skeptical Audience

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