The person who prepares for ordinary questions is less likely to treat curiosity as a challenge.

Defensiveness usually comes from being caught out, not from being attacked. When someone asks the obvious question and you have not thought about it, the discomfort of not knowing arrives first and gets attributed to the asker. Having an answer ready turns the same question into a chance to explain. The whole exchange changes temperature. Preparation is as much about your own composure as about the information.

Before your next presentation or difficult conversation, list the three questions you least want asked. Work out honest answers, so curiosity can arrive without setting anything off.