A videoconference is a scary place to pass the camera and mic. You never know when a “meeting grouch” might appear — like a storm cloud ready to rain on everybody’s parade. But all is not lost! Here’s how to handle a meeting grouch with grace.
Here’s one helpful point to remember:
“Even a grouch can make a helpful point.”
So don’t be too quick to shut them down. Instead, listen and respond to any remarks that seem thoughtful.
But we’re not talking about a simple gloom-and-doom grouch, are we? We’re talking about a hardcore disrupter who enjoys being a thorn in everyone’s side (especially yours, or so it seems).
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What kind of professionals often encounter people who love to toss rude comments and hostile questions? Public relations people, that’s who. Here are a few techniques they use every day.
Adopt a tough-minded attitude. Even if you get knocked off-point, you’re going to get back on point as soon as you possibly can.
“Oh wait! We didn’t get to that yet!” Try saying that loudly in an excited way the next time a grouch interrupts with an off-topic remark. It actually works! And it doesn’t offend.
Sometimes all you can do is let the grouch have his or her say. Then simply ignore it and move on to a topic you want to discuss.
Is there a grain of truth in what the grouch says? Maybe? If you can look past the grouch’s foul mood and glean something useful, begin with, “So what I hear you saying is . . .” then say it a little nicer.
If the grouch has really disrupted your videoconference, don’t try to handle it on the spot (grouches love to argue). Instead, phone the grouch after the meeting (or better yet, pop into his or her office) for a heart-to-heart talk.
But what if the grouch is someone who outranks you in the company? When all else fails, just keep smiling J
OK, we trust our loyal readers — hey, that’s you J — and we know you’re not a grouch, are you? So we invite you to grab the controls of our blog by entering a comment below.
Ever had a grouch give you a hard time? How did you deal with it? Come on, share your experiences.
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On video conferencing we can communicate with the people just by sitting in our home, we can share our views and ideas easily with expressions.