“What if I don’t know how to answer a question?”

 

Is a question I get quite a lot, especially from people who are just starting their presenting journey.

 

You know what?

It is ok not to know all the answers.

Nobody knows everything.

 

And when faced with questions, you may find yourself in several situations.

 

For instance, someone asks you:

“Who is stronger — a bumblebee 🐝 or a beetle 🪲?”

 

🔹 If you have absolutely no idea how to answer, you can always say:

“Sorry, I did not work on this, as my specialty is XX…”, or “We did not get to that part yet.”

You can continue with:

“…but it is interesting, and I will keep it in mind,”

or

“I have a colleague who works in that field, so I can connect you.”

 

It is ok not to know the answer — just try not to leave it at just “I don’t know.”

Give a bit of context if possible.

 

🔹 Maybe you never compared the strength between a 🐝 and a 🪲, but based on some data you gathered, you might have an idea.

In that case, you can say something like:

“Although we didn’t directly measure it, based on our experience…”

 

🔹 Or maybe you know who is stronger but do not remember by how much:

“XX is definitely stronger, but I would have to check my data to tell you exactly how much.”

Then go to the person, exchange email, LinkedIn, or another contact, and let them know later.

 

All of these answers are perfectly fine.

Using any of them — including the “I don’t know” one — does not make you any less good at what you do.

It just shows you are human 💛.