Business English | How to Answer Unexpected Questions at Work [597]

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What can you say when someone asks you an unexpected question at work and you do not have the answer yet? Learn 10 natural business English phrases that give you time to think, help you clarify the question and tell the other person exactly when you will reply.

This practical English lesson is for professionals who use English in meetings, calls and workplace conversations. You will learn how to ask for time to think, check that you understood the question and say clearly when you will have an answer.

Use these phrases to improve your spoken English for work, handle difficult questions with more confidence and communicate clearly with international colleagues.

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Transcript

Speaker: 0:09

Hi there. This is Harry. Welcome back to Advanced English to help you to get a better language, to help you with your business, English skills, goals are, we're here to help. What do I have for you today? So in this advanced English lesson, we're looking at one of the most difficult moments in a workplace meeting. And that is what do you do? What do you say when somebody were not expecting? Okay, we've all been there. You're sitting in the meeting, you're following the conversation. You understand what everybody's And then out of the blue, the boss turns to you, or the client turns to you and asks a question, and you weren't expecting it. and your mind goes blank. So today I've got ten phrases in exactly that situation. I'll go through them one by one and how to use them. Okay, let's get going. Now, before we start, let me When somebody asks you a question and you weren't ready for it, the biggest mistake you can make is to just start talking. Don't guess. Don't panic. Don't just start talking just because you feel you need to answer. If it's the wrong answer, you'll And that's much more difficult than just taking a few seconds to think. So the phrases we're going to Well, they all have one thing in They give you time. Time to think. Time to check. Time to come back with a proper And they do it in a very So the people around the table will not think you don't know your job. They will think, ah, this person is being careful and that's good. Okay, let's start number one. Give me a second to think about Very simple, very easy to say, So the boss turns to you in the meeting and says, so, John, what do you think we should do about the client complaint from yesterday? And you weren't ready for it, You just need a moment to So you say, give me a second to Okay? And now you have a few seconds. You take a breath, you think and then you speak. Now you can also say, just give me a moment or just give me a second. All of those are very, very So give me a second to think And you'll notice you're not You're not saying, oh, I'm You're just saying I need a And that's perfectly Number two. That's a good question. Let me think. English speakers use it all the When you say that's a good question, that's already three or four seconds of thinking time. But be careful. Don't overuse it. Use it maybe once in a meeting. Not every time somebody asks you If you say that's a good question to every single question, people will start to notice and it will sound strange. That's a good question. Let me think. Number three off the top of my Now, this is a really important And it's very, very common in So what does it mean? Well, it means that you're haven't checked it. It's the answer that comes to you immediately, without looking anything up, without checking the file, without asking anybody. So, for example, the boss says, how many customers did we lose last quarter? And you say, off the top of my head, I'd say around forty or fifty, but I'd like to check the exact number. So you're given an answer, but this is not confirmed. Now, one important note. It's off the top of my head. Some people say off the top of The natural expression is off of my head. And for those of you who use together a short quiz called It has eight common meeting what you're already doing well little more help. You can take the quiz at use the link in the description Number four. My first thought is, but I need So you've heard the question. You have a general idea of the the details and you don't want So you say, my first thought is that we should wait until Friday, but I need to look at the details. So you're giving people your You're being helpful, but at the same time, you're being honest that you haven't fully thought it through. So people know what to expect. My first thought is, but I need Number five. Leave it with me. I'll get back to you. Very natural. Very British. English. Very common at work. So somebody asked the question, and you don't want to guess. So you say, leave it with me. I'll get back to you. The important thing here is that you say, leave it with me, and come back to the person, they So always follow up. Leave it with me. I'll get back to you by tomorrow Leave it with me. I'll get back to you by close of Number six. I don't have that information. To hand to hand means available So if somebody asks you for last year's figures and you don't have the file open, you say, I don't have that information to hand. Can I come back to you later A very professional way to say I can't answer right now, but I will answer. Number seven. The short answer is I'll need to This one is really useful when not all of it. So somebody asks you a big the project going? And there are many things you could say, but you know the main point. So you say the short answer is that we're on track for the March deadline, but I'll need to come back on the details of the budget. So you've given them the main That's what they wanted to know And you've told them, look, to you on that. So they get the important that the rest is coming. The short answer is I'll need to Number eight, I don't want to let me check. Now, this is really, really person is looking at you pressure to say something. But if you give them the wrong information and they act on it, well, that's much, much worse than if you had just said, let me check. And people will respect this your work seriously and you care Number nine. Sorry, I wasn't expecting that I'd rather check before I Now this one is a bit more You're actually saying, look, and I need a moment. So the client asks something you had no idea was coming, and you say, sorry, I wasn't expecting that question. I'd rather check before I Now one small point about the You don't need to over apologize I'm really sorry. One brief apology is enough. And after that, move to the I'd rather check. Sorry, I wasn't expecting that I'd rather check before I Okay, here we are. This is the last one. Number ten. Can I come back to you by and Again, this is very important come back to you later? People don't know what later Later today, later this week, So always try to give a specific Can I come back to you by three Can I come back to you by tomorrow morning, or can I come back to you by close of business on Friday? It gives the other person a clear idea of when they'll hear from you. Somebody asks you a question. You don't have the answer. You use one of the phrases we've finish with, can I come back to Or whatever the time happens to And now everybody knows the You'll come back and they know. When can I come back to you? By? And then you tell them when. Okay. So there are ten phrases you can question in a meeting that you As I always say, don't try to Pick two or three the ones that feel most natural to you and practice those. Say them out loud. Use them in your next meeting them, come back and pick another And that's how you build up your Small steps, one at a time. Okay, so let me give them to you Number one, give me a second to Number two, that's a good Let me think. Number three off the top of my Remember off the top of my head, Number four. My first thought is, but I need Number five, leave it with me. I'll get back to you and make Number six. I don't have that information to Careful here. It's to hand and not in my hand. Number seven. The short answer is I'll need to Number eight. I don't want to give you the wrong answer, so let me check number nine. Sorry, I wasn't expecting that I'd rather check before I And then finally, number ten. Can I come back to you by and Okay. So there you have it. Ten useful phrases for those question and you are not quite As I mentioned before, try one See which ones feel natural to job, and which ones you can use And as always, if you need any me on Very happy to hear from you and Okay. This is Harry thanking you for the next lesson.