Creating Hitchhikers Not Hijackers in Your Virtual Meetings

From Kevin Eikenberry, writing in Leadership & Learning about something we’ve all experienced, especially spending so much time on videoconferencing…

Long before a pandemic, when many of our meetings were in person, meetings were often riddled with inefficiency and frustration. The shift to virtual meetings hasn’t made it better. While there are many causes of the challenges, it is possible to have productive virtual meetings that are highly collaborative and stay on track. Making that happen requires that we deter the hijackers and find and pick up the hitchhikers.

What do I mean?

Hijackers – Who They Are and How to Deter Them

You’ve been in the meeting where someone dominates the conversation – taking up al the air in the meeting and perhaps taking the whole meeting off track or topic. Whether the person’s intent is nefarious (to consciously change the subject and agenda) or naïve (they are unaware that their behavior or passion is derailing the meeting), the result is the same.  A Hijacker changes the direction and flow of a meeting, raising frustration and perhaps wasting the time of everyone involved in the meeting.

Here are four suggestions to aid you when you experience hijackers.

For the rest, click here.