Group Discussion (GD): Tips, Tactics, Do's and Don’ts, and Common Mistakes

Tips for Group Discussion (GD)

§  Be patient; Keep your cool if anyone says anything you object to.

§  The key is to stay objective: Don't take the discussion personally.

§  Remember the Seven Cs of effective communication: Clarity, Completeness, Conciseness, Confidence, Correctness, and Courtesy.

§  Be responsive to ideas from other people and very receptive and open-minded.

§  Don't allow others to change your viewpoint. Evaluators are looking for a range of different skills. You may think leadership is key and want to demonstrate this in a discussion, but you need to be careful not to dominate the discussion, as this may come across as aggressive.

§  Often, participants think that success in GD depends on their decibel levels, i.e., how much they speak and how loud they speak. Ironically, It's the opposite.

§  Only Quality pays.

§  Rounding the discussion off when about 2-3 minutes are left, someone in the group must take the initiative and summarize all the issues discussed.

§  Speakers must be aware of the importance of body language.

Tactics to Perform Better in a GD

§  Learn to be assertive when you speak.

§  You need to grab a chance and make yourself heard.

§  Your contribution has to be meaty and substantial.

§  Good knowledge of the basic fundamentals of the topic.

§  Plan your points logically, and don't feel disheartened if you do not get a chance to speak enough. If you've spoken sensibly, then that's good enough.

§  Plan out the points to be raised properly and carefully.

§  In the first two minutes, write down as many ideas as you can think of on the given topic.

§  It’s important to state something different.

§  If you find the group faltering, try to give a fresh direction to the group and strive to build a consensus. Demonstrate the fact that you've team spirit.

§  You can take the group ahead if it is stuck at one point. You can you take it in fresh and more relevant directions.

§  You must be clearly seen as attempting to build a consensus.

§  Gaining support or influencing colleagues is the mantra to be adopted.

§  Demonstrate that you are capable and inclined to work as a part of a team.

§  Try to restore order if the group becomes chaotic.

§  Your level of participation can be low, but your degree of influence must never be low. You must make positive contributions every time you speak.

§  Do not speak just for the sake of speaking.

GD: Do's and Don’ts

One should be regularly in touch with national and international current events, debates programmed on TV channels, articles, and editorials in dailies, magazines, and news portals to accumulate knowledge and consolidate views on everything happening around. Unflinching faith, strong commitment, and a solid implementation plan will see one through the GD.

Do's

§  Make sure you speak at least two or three times, contributing meaningfully to the discussion.

§  Put your views persuasively and modulate your voice accordingly. Whatever you say must be wrapped around with a logical flow. State your point, substantiate it with a reason, and validate it with an example wherever possible.

§  Be courteous and clear and appear confident to command respect. Empathy with your peers is the capability of listening to others, though you might disagree with them. This inspires respect among others. The display of sensitivity to others generates a level of ease in interaction, which is conducive to a comfortable group environment.

§  The display of ability to handle rough situations with a cool mind. Your ability to handle unpleasantness in the discussion, getting a discussion straying away from the topic back on track.

§  Have a good attitude. A person with a positive attitude can direct his thoughts, control his emotions, and regulate his attitude.

§  Make sure that all your points are original and backed by substantial reasoning as to why you believe so. If somebody has already made the point you wanted to make, you can go ahead and either support or oppose the point, provided you can give substantial reasoning as to why you think so.

§  It is better to concentrate on one or two ideas at a time to avoid confusion in your development of thought; otherwise, you may end up making irrelevant statements, and you will be labeled as inconsistent as well.

§  Listen effectively.

§  When your views are challenged, you must be able to defend your statement tactfully and convincingly. Be alert and show interest in what others are saying. Analyze your strong points and substantiate them by examples,

§  Concentrate on what you want to say and how you want to say it.

§  Present your points in a logical order to make them interesting.

§  Try to set a good beginning and equally a good ending.

§  Be natural, friendly, and cheerful. Friendliness is something of a bonus.

§  Remember, you have come to win friends, not to make toes.

§  Speak to the whole group, looking at each candidate in turn. Effective eye contact is an important feedback device. Eye contact binds a speaker with his audience.

Don’ts

§  Resist annoying mannerisms, such as fidgeting, scratching, picking, shuffling, and avoiding eye contact.

§  Refrain from jumping to conclusions to make sweeping generalizations.

§  For example,  ‘frailty thy name is woman’ - Shakespeare

§  Don’t interrupt others while they are making some points.

§  Don't scream or use curse words, slang, etc.

§  Don't mumble and talk too softly; a wailing or whining voice has an instant depressing effect on others.

§  Avoid making statements that do not add value to the discussion.

§  Don’t say: ‘You are wrong/ You are being unfair/ I don’t like your ideas. Rather, Say:

§  I understand what you mean, and I think ……

§  I respect your opinion and feel ……

§  I agree with you, and I feel ……

§  I agree with you, and I want to add …….

§  Don't ramble on and on. Remember, the quality of the content is more important than the quantity of time you take to speak.

§  Avoid gesturing unnecessarily. It would help if you were different from others but not in a negative manner.

§  Refrain from using polite fillers: could you please, if you don't mind etc. They are a waste of time.

 The Most Common Mistakes:

§   Emotional outburst: If you vent anger by accusing the other candidate, for instance, being a male chauvinist or going on to defend women in general. Don’t make the GD session a platform to vent your grievances, and in the process, lose objectivity and start making personal attacks.

§   Being Talkative: Interrupting other speakers at every opportunity, so often that the other candidates got together to prevent you from participating in the rest of the discussion.

§   Show off: If you get a topic of your choice on which you have extensive knowledge. In such a scenario, practice restraint. You will be frowned upon if you attempt to show off your knowledge. Facts and figures only need to validate some of your statements. It's your analysis and interpretation that are equally important. Over-dominating the group indicates how self-centered you are and highlights your inability to work in an atmosphere where different opinions are expressed.

§   Get noticed for the wrong reasons: In your eagerness to be first to speak, you did not hear the topic properly and correctly. A false start is extremely expensive, which costs you your final selection. Starting off the group discussion with a mistake is one such mistake unless you have a great sense of humour.

§   Managing one’s insecurities If some of the candidates are exceptionally good, and due to your insecurity, you contribute very little to the discussion. Rather than evaluating others and your performance, participate in the discussion. Your confidence level is being evaluated.

  Dr. Karminder Ghuman, Head of MBA Department, LM Thapar School of Management,                  Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology (Deemed to be University), Patiala

Based on contents from the book: "The Art and Science of Effective and Impactful Business Communication" 

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