How to Reply to "What Are You Gonna Do About It"

If you’re learning another language, you might be fascinated: one person living on one side of the world found a completely different way of describing the same thing! And when you get over that, you get even more fascinated when something is described similarly in two languages. For example, Spanish and English are vastly different languages. But still, words like hour (hora), student (estudiante), and university (universidad) seem like a historic multiverse.

Today, people are quite adept at learning languages. There are many ways for you to learn a language alone. You need a few books, YouTube, and Duolingo, and you’re good to go.

Moreover, English has established itself as a worldwide spoken language, so the barrier isn’t there anymore. People know what they want to say, but that’s the least. Presenting it nuancedly with the finesse of someone who has learned and practiced a language for years is the real deal.

If you go to a small village in India, you can easily communicate your basic needs, wants, and requirements with the villagers in English. However, we’ve come way too far to stop at that.

The trick is to say and respond to statements and questions to truly express your thoughts and intentions behind them, both verbally and non-verbally.

For example, let’s say you go on a date with someone you thought was nice, but the spark isn’t there. Now, you need to communicate this in a way that doesn’t hurt their feelings, won’t make you look rude, and make them think it’s about you, not them.

The normal answer to this might be a cold “I don’t think I liked you that much for a second date. Thanks, though.” But you can make it much warmer, sweeter, and kinder with a “Hey, I had a lot of fun tonight, and I’m so sorry for doing this but I just can’t feel the spark, you know? I hope you find someone who truly appreciates you, and best of luck for the future!”

Wasn’t that so much better?

Today’s blog will discuss how to respond to “what are you gonna do about it?”.

How to Reply to “What Are You Gonna Do About It”

If you’ve ever been asked, “what are you gonna do about it?” you know that many contextual clues are required to answer. In general, this question implies that the questioner asks you if you can do something about the situation.

But this sentence has multiple professional, threatening, and flirty implications. Don’t worry; we’ll be discussing them all today.

In professional context

Now, there isn’t much to discuss here. Let’s say you’re at work, and one of your superiors asks, “what are you gonna do about it.” You already know the answer: just tell them whatever the answer is in your understanding.

If you don’t have an answer, try something along the lines of “I’m afraid I don’t have much knowledge in this field. But if you were to explain the basics to me, I assure you I’ll follow up immediately and learn all there is to know.”

Such an answer will show peak professionalism, politeness, willingness to learn, and promise to deliver. Pair it with confident body language and natural curiosity, and that’s your perfect response right there.

In threatening context

If someone’s trying to threaten you or get a rise out of you for no reason, you’ll want to show them they’re messing with the wrong person. However, that’s where most people go wrong because they resort to shouting and, often, verbal abuse. The point is, that’s exactly what they wanted from you.

Instead, be calm, don’t laugh, but take it lightly. Smile while uttering a sentence that should at least make them stop and think, if not afraid. Achieving this needs a perfect reply, confident body language, and a relaxed vibe. Here are some responses you might like to try in such a situation.

“I’m… going to get another drink. But it looks like you’ve had enough. Too much, actually.”

“If you think I need to do anything about it, you’re dead-wrong, bro.”

“I’ll let my lawyer decide. Trust me, that’s what you want me to do.”

“Wouldn’t you wanna know?”

Another great alternative is to just give a little smirk and walk away. You’re well above all this petty talk, after all. Trust us; they’ll be infuriated when they see you’re unfazed by their childish drama.

In flirty context

Lastly, these words can be spoken in a flirty tone as foreplay. Now, of course, you’re the only one who can decide what goes best here. However, in a moment of need where your partner expects you to have something witty lined up, we hope these replies can be of use.

“I’d rather show than tell. And trust me, you’ll like it.”

“Try me and I might just let you find out.”

“Exactly what you want me to.”

“Well well, won’t you like to know?”

These templates are enough for you to add your spice and dominate any conversation where this sentence is included.

Closing thoughts

Rhetorical questions don’t seem important, but the right response to those might just help you win the ‘wit test.’ And trust us, if you miss that chance, you won’t get another for quite some time.

Instead, researching how to reply to normal, everyday questions with a bit of smart talk is the way to go! Slowly, you’ll be confident enough to know what to say without Googling or even thinking.

Today, we’ve discussed the three main scenarios where the question “what are you gonna do about it” can be thrown at you. If we’ve missed out on such situations, comment on the scenario below, and we’ll give you the perfect response!

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How to Reply to “What Are You Gonna Do About It”