Great Answers to Tough Questions at Work

Great Answers to Tough Questions at Work

by Michael Dodd
Released July 2016
Publisher(s): Capstone
ISBN: 9780857086396

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Book description

The essential guide to turning tough questions into positive opportunities

Difficult questions can be thrown at you from your first job interview through to challenges you get when you’ve made it to the top. If you find yourself on the firing line on a regular or occasional basis this is the perfect go-to guide to help you turn tough questions into positive opportunities.

Great Answers to Tough Questions at Work promotes a confident 'win-win-win' mindset for questioner, answerer and wider audiences beyond. Author Michael Dodd provides golden formulae and proven strategies for constructing inspirational answers—however challenging, vicious, tricky or stupid the question. He outlines simple but successful techniques for dealing with the kind of nightmare questions which all ambitious people in the workplace have to face along their journey, whatever stage of their career.

  • Contains critical communication skills for executives, managers, leaders and those aspiring to fill these roles
  • Covers a wide range of work place scenarios such as job interviews, performance reviews, negotiations, customer relations, parliamentary inquiries and cross-examination
  • Discusses how to see the issues underlying tough questions that you face in a different, more positive, solution-oriented way
  • Includes case study examinations of key moments where people in the public spotlight have done something particularly well or particularly badly while answering questions and draws out the lessons for readers.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Series Page
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright
  5. Introduction: Helping You Thrive On “Blowtorch-On-The-Belly” Questioning
  6. Part One: The Tools You Need
    1. Chapter 1: Winning Answers Every Time
      1. Scoring a Goal with Every Answer
      2. Taking Inspiration from a Master
      3. Learning What Not to Do
      4. Winning Answers in the Right Spirit
      5. Observing How Not to Do It
    2. Chapter 2: Crafting the Right Message to Underpin Every Answer
      1. Crafting That Message Your Questioners Need
      2. Determine Your Message First, Then Formulate Your Answer
      3. What Is the Message?
      4. Formulating Your Key Message
      5. Crafting That Great Message
      6. Combining Fact and Emotion in Your Message
    3. Chapter 3: Harnessing the Power of Stories
      1. Using Stories to Enhance Your Answers
      2. Doing It Like the Presidents Do
      3. Great Stories Prompt Change
      4. Painting Pictures in the Minds of Your Audience
      5. Collecting Illustrations for Your Treasure Chest
      6. Using Stories to Grab and Wow Your Audience
      7. The Story That Hits All Factors
      8. Make Your Stories Pass the “So What?” Test
    4. Chapter 4: Finding Out in Advance – Then Planning For It
      1. Getting It Right in That Set-Up Discussion
      2. Asking the Right Questions, So You Can Prepare the Right Answers
      3. Having a Pro-Active and Reactive Plan
      4. Getting Your Preparation Right
      5. Turning a Negative Mindset to a Positive One
    5. Chapter 5: The First Golden Formula – Simple As ABCDE
      1. How you Structure Your Answer is Critical
      2. Deal with the Bad – Then Gravitate to the Positive
      3. Making the Formula Work for You
      4. Phrasing Answers with Your Positive Words
      5. How to Avoid Echoing Negatives
      6. Moving from the Specific to the General
      7. Moving from the General to the Specific
      8. Dictating that Next Question
    6. Chapter 6: The Second Golden Formula – What to Say When Something Goes Seriously Wrong
      1. Talk to the Heart before the Head
      2. Show Your Concern Right at the Start
      3. Using the Care Approach in Action
      4. How the Care Approach Helps
      5. Switching Formula As You Need to
    7. Chapter 7: Maximizing the Impact of Your Examples and Stories
      1. Story Telling Is a Learnable Skill
      2. Shape Your Example to Give That Great Finish
      3. Preparing Stories That Stick
      4. Applying the Rules to Your Example or Story
    8. Chapter 8: Getting Your Performance Right
      1. Watch Yourself Back and Adjust
      2. Project the Best Version of You
      3. Be a Great Performer
      4. Move with a Purpose
      5. Liberate Your Arms
      6. Study Those Weather Forecasters
      7. Get It Right with Your Face
      8. Be Careful When Listening
      9. Use But Minimize Notes – Where Necessary
      10. Rehearse, Relax and Succeed
      11. Wisdom from a Vocal Master
      12. Visualize Your Success
    9. Chapter 9: Conveying Your Answers to Different Personality Types
      1. Crafting Answers to Persuade Specific Individuals
      2. Connecting With Four Different Personalitytypes
      3. Giving the Right Stuff to the Right Person
  7. Part Two: Using Your New Tools
    1. Chapter 10: Great Answers for Prospects
      1. Be Ready for That “What Do You Do?” Question
      2. Selling Digital Music To Cave Dwellers
      3. Asking Great Questions Paves the Way for Giving Great Answers
      4. Guidance on That “What Do You Do?” Question
      5. Discover What's Fascinating About Your Field
      6. Answering the Elevator Question
      7. Structuring Your Self-Introduction
      8. Dealing With Those Tough Sales Questions
    2. Chapter 11: Great Answers During Price Negotiations
      1. Be Ready for Questions Like These. . .
      2. Plan Your Approach for Great Outcomes
      3. Key Negotiation Principles to Underpin Your Great Answers
      4. Making Gold, Silver and Bronze Offerings
      5. What to Prepare in Advance
      6. Putting It Into Action
      7. Putting Your Preparation Into Action
    3. Chapter 12: Great Answers for Clients
      1. Great Answers That Help Build High-Level Client Partnerships
      2. Positive Responses To Client Worries
      3. Dealing With Tough Client Questions When Something's Gone Badly Wrong
      4. Keeping Your Clients on Board Through Your Great Answers
    4. Chapter 13: Great Answers in Those Nerve-Wracking Job Interviews
      1. Find Out All You Can in Advance
      2. Think Through Why You Should Have the Job
      3. Despite the Pressure, They Usually Want You to Succeed
      4. Projecting the Right Attitude
      5. Preparing for Questions At a New Full-Time Job Interview
      6. Dealing With Pressure Questions in Interviews for Senior Posts
      7. Prepare for All Those Predictable Job Interview Questions
    5. Chapter 14: Great Answers for Your Boss
      1. Use Your Boss's Questions to “Manage Upwards”
      2. Utilize Critical Questions to Springboard Onto What You Require
      3. When Things Go Wrong, Establish Your Position Before the Questions Start
      4. A look at other tricky boss questions
    6. Chapter 15: Great Answers in Presentations, at Events and in Meetings
      1. Ensuring Your Presentation Inspires Those Questions
      2. Integrating Your Presentation and the Q&A Session
      3. Set Out the Question Guidelines Early
      4. Guidance on Answers in Meetings
      5. Answers for Your Entire Audience
    7. Chapter 16: Shining Out Through the Media and at Public Grillings
      1. Under Sustained Questioning, Always Go Back to ABCDE
      2. Getting It Right in that Interview Request Call
      3. Asking the Right Questions, So You can Prepare the Right Answers
      4. Tapping into the Power of Asking Questions
      5. Being Prepared for Tough Questions in an Unfolding Crisis
      6. In the Inquiry Spotlight, Say what Needs to be Said
      7. Your Role in Conveying the Wider Picture
  8. Ongoing Enhancement: Great Answers for Your Inspirational Future
  9. About the Author
  10. Acknowledgements
  11. Index
  12. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: Great Answers to Tough Questions at Work
  • Author(s): Michael Dodd
  • Release date: July 2016
  • Publisher(s): Capstone
  • ISBN: 9780857086396