Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 5, Dominant Participants



Learn Management Articles on management-info.biz. Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 5, Dominant Participants article will help answer your questions on Management Articles.We at management-info.biz specialize in Management Articles. Management Articles at management-info.biz provides the most up to date news and articles. If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

While dominant participants contribute significantly to the success of a meeting, they can also overwhelm, intimidate, and exclude others. Thus, you want to control their energy without losing their support.

Approach 1: Ask others to contribute

Asking quiet participants to contribute indirectly moderates the more dominant participants. Say:

'Before we continue, I want to hear from the rest of the group.'

'This is great. And I wonder what else we could do.' (Look at the quiet participants when you say this.)

Approach 2: Change the process

A balanced dialogue equalizes participation and sequential participation (a round robin) prevents anyone from dominating the discussion.

Approach 3: Include them in the process

Ask dominant participants for their support during the meeting. Meet with the person privately and say:

'I need your help with something. It's clear to me that you know a great deal about this issue and have many good ideas. I also want to hear what other people in the meeting have to say. So, I wonder if you could hold back a little, to let others contribute.'

You can also retain control by giving away minor tasks. For example, dominant participants make excellent helpers. They can distribute materials, run errands, serve as scribes, deliver messages, post chart papers, run demonstration units, operate projectors, change overhead transparencies, act as greeters, and in general perform any logistical task related to the meeting.

Approach 4: Create barriers

Simply move away from the more aggressive participants and make less eye contact. If you are unable to see them, you are unable to recognize them as the next speaker.

Use this approach with moderation and support it with complimentary requests for assistance. Ignoring someone conveys disapproval, which could change a potential ally into an adversary.

Approach 5: One point at a time

Sometimes dominant participants will control a discussion by listing many points in a single statement. They cite every challenge, condition, and consideration known, which completely clogs everyone else's thinking. End this by asking participants to state only one point at a time, after which someone else speaks. It is very difficult to monopolize a discussion when this technique prevails.

Quiet participants often hope to be ignored; dominant participants want to be noticed. A quiet person may feel overbearing after making two statements in an hour. A dominant participant may feel left out after contributing only 95% of the ideas. You will be most successful moderating dominant participants by building bridges between what they want and what you need.

Approach 6: Interrupt with 'excuse me'

Use the words 'excuse me' as a wedge to interrupt a long monologue. It's important that you say 'Excuse me' with polite sincerity. For example, you could say:

'Excuse me, this seems interesting and I wonder if you could tell me how it relates to our meeting.'

'Excuse me, I'm sure this is very important and since we have only five minutes left for this issue, I wonder if you could summarize your main point.'

Use these techniques to hold effective meetings by moderating contributions from the more outspoken participants.

This is the fifth of a seven part article on Managing Monsters in Meetings.



The Good News About Cataracts. - Eyes/Vision: Information on managing cataracts using diet, antioxidant supplements, eyedrops (surgical procedure also detailed)
Http:myweightlossfriend.com. - Save Time and $ Delightful weight loss motivational books an Cds for women make weight loss meetings a thing of the past.

(C))Kakifly,Houbunsha/Sakura-ko Keion-bu
(C)Kakifly,Houbunsha/Sakura-ko Keion-bu

   Pony Canyon, a major company of Japanese music industry, released a CD with 2 songs of popular TV anime K-On!! The songs are used at the episode 20 of K-On's second season, which a band, composed of the anime's main characters, plays in a story.



Article Index: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81


More Articles:


1. Productivity Through Positive Reinforcement By D.M. Giolitto
Most people just want to be appreciated. If you're a manager, that's something to seriously think about as you set the tone for maximum productivity.Ever work for someone who preferred a 'bullying and intimidation' managerial style? This type of bullying doesn't involve spitballs and shiners in the schoolyard, but it might as well because it produces the same feelings of inferiority, worthlessness and mistrust among peers. It turns workers disloyal, dishonest, and downright disgusted. The bull…
Cocktail
IM Doing Business Online

2. 3 Keys to Being a Fearless Executive By Dr. Leif Smith
In my work with business executives, I have come to the conclusion that most individuals in positions of influence got there accidentally. This may sound harsh to those of you in the business world reading this article, but the truth CAN be harsh, much like the medicine our mothers gave us as young children. There is a bright side, however, to this fact: Those of you who put in the effort can rise far above the average executive. Here are three tips to do that, and quickly:1. Learn to love res…

3. Organizing Your Small Business
A fundamental challenge of small business can be summarized as 'too many tasks, too few people.' Unlike large enterprises which can have whole teams devoted to limited tasks - think 'Task force for the unification of stapler specifications and procedures' - small businesses can have one person covering anything and everything. The time to address 'who does what' in an organization is the time when the organization contemplates adding its very first employee. If you are a 'one man (or woman) show…

4. Ten Problem Solving Techniques By Steven Gillman
Do you ever need to find some good ideas, or come up with a solution for a persistent problem? Learn some simple problem solving techniques, and start applying them. Choose a few of the methods below, and get in the habit of using them in your personal life and your business.Problem Solving Techniques1. Clarify what a successful solution is, and that will guide your efforts. In fact, sometimes just clarifying the desired outcome will suggest immediate solutions.2. Get opinions and/or advice f…