It’s difficult to have a group discussions where everyone participates, you stay on topic, one person doesn’t dominate the conversation.

And the challenge thickens when group discussions are held in a remote environment.

Some strategies to overcome these barriers are:

1. Be clear on the agenda beforehand to keep everyone on track.
2. Identify a champion and ask them to share or ask a question so you aren’t the sole one driving the discussion.
3. Leverage silence. This is one of my favorites. Restate the question as many times as needed and just wait for someone to answer.
4. Provide opportunities for members of the group to step up in leadership. When was the last time you asked someone to lead the entire agenda and you can move to a supporting role?

And on the bright side, adapting to remote discussions will identify best practices to carry over to our in person discussions.

Photo by Daniele Levis Pelusi on Unsplash.