Ask This Instead of “Have Questions?”
I am a quiet person. I and my classmates always a bad thing to ask questions to the teacher or recognize that we have questions. I wish I had someone like the historian and professor Jacqueline Antonovich who recently tweeted a ploy to keep her students quiet. She is simply paraphrasing the prompt “Questions?” to “What questions do you have for me?”
“Any questions?” can mean – especially for a timid, overly polite group – that you would like to move on, that questions are a necessary evil, that asking them implies that you are not doing well like everyone else. But any good educator or speaker wants their audience to interact to make sure they understand and to show that your words got them thinking.
This is equally important in professional life. Whether you’ve presented a marketing plan, presentation, or budget, you need immediate feedback. What you definitely don’t want is for everyone to keep their reservations to themselves and then toss them to you after a few days, wasting all the work you did because you thought they had no questions or comments.
Therefore, ask for feedback in such a way that it is anticipated and even requires it. Take the time to do this, respect the feedback you get, help people feel better because they spoke up.
Read Dr. Antonovich’s answers for more communication tips beyond education. For example, Professor Miranda Hajduk avoids saying “you” in his criticisms , instead referring to the work: “Here is lost essay” or “This slide confuses me.” Professor Angela Jenks has renamed her “work hours” to “student hours” to clarify their purpose.