Dealing with people who interrupt
Discussion
One method I used to use when attendees seemed to regularly want to interrupt was to screw up several pages of paper into a ball and then you can only speak when you have the ball in your possession. There is a problem however, getting the ball back sometimes! Actually, this sounds a stupid solution but it did work surprisingly well.
R.
R.
I find people speaking when you are as quite rude and it displays a complete lack of professionalism, so I pigeon hole those people straight away as people I'd not wish to do business with nor respect (that's my starting position; always happy to be won over by them at a later stage).
Having got that off my chest...if people are talking when I'm talking (as Chair), I simply stop talking and look at them until they realise and stop talking.
As to interruptions; I've not encountered anything as bad as you're portraying, but when it does happen at the lesser scale, I'm hoping it's for good reason, either to correct me or to offer a further insight in to the topic under discussion.
If it was happening in a rude or unprofessional way, I'd tackle the individual after the meeting. If it was so bad during the meeting and it couldn't wait; I'd be direct but professional, asking them to desist until it was polite to speak.
Having got that off my chest...if people are talking when I'm talking (as Chair), I simply stop talking and look at them until they realise and stop talking.
As to interruptions; I've not encountered anything as bad as you're portraying, but when it does happen at the lesser scale, I'm hoping it's for good reason, either to correct me or to offer a further insight in to the topic under discussion.
If it was happening in a rude or unprofessional way, I'd tackle the individual after the meeting. If it was so bad during the meeting and it couldn't wait; I'd be direct but professional, asking them to desist until it was polite to speak.
ChrisNic said:
Try simply saying nothing when they finally run out of steam, give them a sufficient pause and ask them if they have finished so you can continue with what you were saying.
Somewhat rude but often makes them think.
Yes, this would be 'OK' but I would imagine you might only do it with 'peers'. I would find it quite difficult to get another role if I pulled these sort of wise cracks in a room of Senior Management so probably tone it down with ' What I was trying to say was / what I was saying'. You have to gauge on how rude the disruption is and how much you care about being interrupted.Somewhat rude but often makes them think.
Some people may not realise they are interrupting. I have noticed with some people who are really passionate about a certain subject just can't wait to jump in with their 2p and many do without thinking that other's are still talking.
IME, I keep talking, and if they persist I will interrupt THEM with something like "sorry, I'm still speaking" etc. On the rare occasion they persist or get cheeky/rude, I just say something like "if you're going to continue to interrupt me and speak over me I'll leave the room as this is becoming a waste of my time".
Works every time.
Does help that I am somewhat senior in my organisation.
IME, I keep talking, and if they persist I will interrupt THEM with something like "sorry, I'm still speaking" etc. On the rare occasion they persist or get cheeky/rude, I just say something like "if you're going to continue to interrupt me and speak over me I'll leave the room as this is becoming a waste of my time".
Works every time.
Does help that I am somewhat senior in my organisation.
well the interruptor has no excuse if at a later date they turn around and say I didnt hear you tell me not to do this or that - thats because they were too busy gassing over you instead of listening.
youll note those same people somehow manage to keep their mouths shut if its just you and them alone but get them in a room full of other people and they cant help themselves. not sure whats going on there.
youll note those same people somehow manage to keep their mouths shut if its just you and them alone but get them in a room full of other people and they cant help themselves. not sure whats going on there.
Some good advice here -
The ball of paper idea - works better than you imagine
Stop talking and look at them - this subconsciously uses the group against them as everyone will turn round and look
A couple that I would add -
Set the rules out at the start of each meeting about waiting to ask questions etc. Surprising how often people forget that you may have done that so many meetings ago
Think about your room setup. Meetings like this often have a person like you “out the front” and them as an audience. If you change that around you can use your own presence to control the group. For example, if you have a boardroom table make a point of sitting next to the mouthy person who always jumps in. They will find it harder to do so if you are sitting next to them, and psychologically even more so if you are sitting on the same side as their dominant hand. Another truck similar if you are able to get up and walk around whilst talking is to stand behind the person who is likely to interrupt when speaking and again they won’t generally turn round and challenge you. Google psychological group facilitation techniques. There are loads of subtle tricks to control an audience and they won’t even notice you’re doing it.
The worst thing you can do is show your annoyance with interruptions with things like “as I was saying before I was interrupted”
Finally and most obvious, stop for questions or comments on a regular basis. If people notice a pattern they will more likely stick to it.
The ball of paper idea - works better than you imagine
Stop talking and look at them - this subconsciously uses the group against them as everyone will turn round and look
A couple that I would add -
Set the rules out at the start of each meeting about waiting to ask questions etc. Surprising how often people forget that you may have done that so many meetings ago
Think about your room setup. Meetings like this often have a person like you “out the front” and them as an audience. If you change that around you can use your own presence to control the group. For example, if you have a boardroom table make a point of sitting next to the mouthy person who always jumps in. They will find it harder to do so if you are sitting next to them, and psychologically even more so if you are sitting on the same side as their dominant hand. Another truck similar if you are able to get up and walk around whilst talking is to stand behind the person who is likely to interrupt when speaking and again they won’t generally turn round and challenge you. Google psychological group facilitation techniques. There are loads of subtle tricks to control an audience and they won’t even notice you’re doing it.
The worst thing you can do is show your annoyance with interruptions with things like “as I was saying before I was interrupted”
Finally and most obvious, stop for questions or comments on a regular basis. If people notice a pattern they will more likely stick to it.
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