Frustrated by domineering behavior in your meetings? Here’s how to keep it in check (most of the time)

We’ve all been in a meeting with that person: the one who speaks the loudest, monopolizes the conversation and talks over others. Being in proximity to this type of behavior can feel miserable (whether you’re a participant or the leader of the session). When it goes unchecked, it can often feel like bullying and will completely derail an otherwise productive gathering. So, how do meeting leaders and workshop facilitators make sure teams can collaborate and produce their best work without being bulldozed by someone loud and intimidating? A bit of effort before and during a session can keep things running well and reduce the likelihood that this type of behavior will emerge from participants. And when it does, I’ve got tips for that too. <h2>Manage Expectations</h2> I’ve found that setting expectations for a workshop or meeting is a great way to get the group to focus on the problem at hand and manage tangential dialogue. I send an agenda to the participants in advance with information about what we’ll be doing and why we’ll be doing it in order to get their buy-in before we’re in the room. I also invite people to respond with questions via email so that they can talk to me directly about any concerns before we’re with the full team. It helps clarify the focus for our meeting and gives me something to defer to when loud voices try to hijack the conversation. Are they going off topic? Rambling on for many minutes? Simply point to the agenda as proof that you aren’t here to discuss “x” today, or that we need to keep moving to stay on track. <a href="https://jackiecolburn.medium.com/frustrated-by-domineering-behavior-in-your-meetings-3c2c53b71ed3">Learn More</a>