Listen to the questions

When you give a talk, listen carefully to the questions.
Do not cut off the questioner, even if you think they are mistaken. Let them finish.
You can learn a lot from the questions and criticism and skepticism of your audience, even if you disagree.

Answering, "I don't know. I will try and find an answer for you" is preferable to waffling on about things you do not understand or making claims you cannot back up. The latter reduces your credibility considerably more than the former.

Caveat: it is easier to give advice than to actually put it into practice. Like all advice I give here I do not claim that I always do it myself. But, it is what I want to aim for.

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