What's so Bad about "Good Question"

Panel Discussions , Media Training , Presentation Tips , Business Communication

Buckley school coaches tend to listen to podcasts a little differently, as evidenced by a recent exchange we had about saying "that's a good question" in an interview.

It started with this message: "Y'all probably know that 'good question' as a response is a pet peeve of mine" and a link to an NPR show.

That was followed by a lot of chiming in to agree: "Oh, wow." And "The response for every question, by my count!"

Perhaps you wonder: Is it really so bad to respond to a question with "That’s a good question." After all, if it's a common, seemingly natural, response, where's the harm?

Here's why we think you might want to check the "good answer" urge, plus some ways you can bridge the gap to a better answer, whether you're being interviewed for the media, answering questions during a business presentation, participating in a panel discussion, or talking one-on-one with a client or in a job interview.

How "good question" happens

There are several reasons people open their response with "that's a good question." Some are genuine responses. Others are blurted out on autopilot. Maybe you say it because:

You're meaning to bring this point up in your presentation, and you're glad the point's been raised.
You think it's a legitimate concern, one you're prepared to address.
You hear a concern, and you don't have a ready answer.
You like the question, and you're happy to answer it.
You like the question, and you don't know how to answer it.
You hate the question, and you don't want to answer it.
You have no idea what to say, and you're stalling while you come up with something.

With so many possible motives at work, is it any wonder an audience or interviewer might have feelings about "that's a good question" as your initial response?

What's bad about it

There are a few pitfalls with using this phrase to start your response to a question, some of them depending on the situation and who's asking:

An interviewer, client, or boss may think "Yes, it's a good question, which is why I'm asking it."
An audience may think you're trying to dodge a question, even when you're not.
If you say it repeatedly, almost automatically, it doesn't sound genuine.
If you say it repeatedly, it also becomes a pattern like other filler (you know, um, like) and audiences will fixate on the pattern.
If you say it several times, then don't, the person asking may wonder "what’s wrong with my question."
If the question is negative or challenging, you may sound unprepared or defensive.
Those words are empty and don't add anything useful to the conversation.

What you can say instead

If you find yourself relying on "that's a good question" more than you'd like, consider why you're saying it and try to get to your answer a different way. When you don't have a ready answer:

You can pause for a beat, think, then respond. A moment of silence when you're part of a panel discussion, answering a client question, or participating in a job interview can show that you're composed and thoughtful.
You can say you need a moment to consider, take it, then respond. That can be helpful if pausing silently might feel awkward in a situation (such as an NPR interview).
You can clarify, restate, or reframe the question. If a question is broad, for example, you might respond with your own question to narrow the scope. If a question is positive, you might restate it before answering. Or you can reframe. For example, if a client asks during a presentation "why is this costing so much?" you can reframe with "let's look at your question about the budget," so that you don't have to restate a negative.
You can acknowledge a concern without agreeing with it. This can be especially helpful when a question is hostile or challenging. One caution: Don't identify a concern unless it's clearly in the question. For example, if you said "I can understand the frustration" to someone who hasn't said they're frustrated, you might encourage them to become frustrated with you even when they weren't.
You can use bridging to both get your thoughts together and get to a better answer. Take a page from media training and acknowledge the question, then move to a key point you want to make. You might say something like, "You’re asking about xxx, but what we’re trying to focus on is yyyy…."
You can come up with other phrases to (occasionally) use that roughly do the same thing. For example, maybe you say "That’s something we're considering" or "That’s a question we've had before" or "We've been asking ourselves..." or "That's a new question."

Why make the effort

We tell our students an occasional filler phrase won't do them in. We remind them that perfection isn't the goal. With that in mind, a "good question" here or there isn't going to spell your doom.

If it's your habitual response, though, you'll do yourself and your audiences a huge favor by getting rid of it. Any time we can eliminate empty words, we help our audiences zero in on the important ones. When we can break up an annoying pattern, we help our audiences stay engaged with us and all the wonderful things we're doing to communicate with them. By finding our own fresh words instead of automatically repeated phrases, we're coming across as our more authentic self.