Meetings extended speaking and interrupting
Choose one of the following topics about meetings and talk about it for up to two minutes. Your partner will tell you when you have talked for that long.
Being chair
Taking notes
The minutes
Sticking to the agenda
Small talk in meetings
Presentations
Teleconferences
Videoconferences
One to one meetings
Pointless meetings
Cultural differences in meetings
Formal meetings
Venue
Negotiations
Decision making in meetings
Breaks
Do the same, but this time your partner will try to interrupt you as much as they can. At the end of two minutes you will get up to four points depending on how much of that time you spoke, e.g. only two minutes if your partner did half of the speaking.
| Interrupting | Letting the other person speak | Avoiding interruption |
| Can I just say something here?
Sorry, but… Can I interrupt you for a moment? Could I come in here? I have something to say (on this point) |
Go ahead.
Sorry, after you. I’ll let you finish.
|
Can I just finish (what I was saying)?
Please let me finish (and then you can speak) As I was saying… Where was I? Could you wait a second? |
Do the same, but this time with one person trying to do the introduction for a meeting. Possible stages:
Greeting people as they come into the meeting
Interrupting small talk and getting down to business
Greetings, welcome and thanks for coming
Explaining the reasons for the meeting and the expected outcomes
Saying how long the meeting is going to take
Saying how the meeting will be organised
Mentioning the agenda
Talking about the minutes
Making sure all the participants know each other
Apologies from people who are absent
Introducing the first point of the agenda
Getting the discussion started
What stages from above would you really include in the introduction to a meeting? What order would you usually put them in?
What stages would you have at the start of a teleconference or video conference?
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Related pages
Meetings and negotiations page
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