3 ways to handle broadcast behaviours

Some broadcast behaviours you might have noticed, where people are:

• Speaking.
• Waiting to speak (a.k.a. fidgeting).
• Interrupting.

When you notice these, what can you do about them? Three useful ideas you might test out are:

1. Acknowledge. What about meetings where someone raises the same topic every time? Chances are they haven't feel listened to. Let them know they're heard.
2. Search. Are you sometimes surprised by people's opinions. Try to find out how they arrived at their point-of-view. You may learn something new. Sometimes the speaker will even unravel their logic and change their minds.
3. Kit. You know how some meetings wander all over the place. Use your consultancy toolkit to structure things and end random broadcasting. You might suggest everyone write down the two most important points they want to make. Then move into small groups for sharing and consolidation. The Consensus Workshop from ICA is good process to add to your kit.

You can remember them with the acronym A.S.K. Now tell me ...

• What do you make of these ideas?
• Where and when will you test them?
• Do you have other options for 'broadcasters' you already use (if so please share)?

A mini-mission.

Test drive one of the above approaches with another human. Let me know how you get on.