Few things are more off-putting than interrupting someone when he or she is speaking, especially in business. If you’ve recently found yourself being constantly interrupted, you can surely relate to how abrasive it feels.
Here are my etiquette tips on curtailing your nasty little habit…Silence please!
- Practice not interrupting at home. Ask your friends and family to alert and stop you if (and when) you interrupt. You may be completely unaware of how much, and how often you interrupt those you encounter on a daily basis. Correcting your behavior at home will surely spill over into the office as well.
- Improve your listening skills. Are you truly listening to what your coworker or supervisor has to say? It’s far too easy to fall into the trap of simply planning what your response will be when others are speaking. Give yourself time to fully listen and fully respond. Sometimes the feeling of being in a hurry to respond is an unnecessary burden we put on ourselves. Take your time, avoid distractions and maintain eye contact.
- Quickly correct your misstep. If you catch yourself interrupting someone, quickly apologize and give him or her room to speak. He or she will appreciate your apology and be more likely to forget the mistake.
- Practice self-control. If you’ve developed the bad habit of interrupting, be hyper vigilant and make every effort to improve. When you catch yourself wanting to jump in during someone else’s sentence, literally bite your tongue or touch your mouth for just a moment. This will serve as a gentle reminder to yourself to stop interrupting.
- Jot it down. If you are in a meeting and have the urge to interrupt, write your thoughts down on a notepad instead. This way, you won’t lose your train of thought and your response will be more cohesive…a definite plus.
Given the proper time and attention, you’ll find you will interrupt less, have more friends and cultivate more business contacts in the process.
About the Author:
Diane Gottsman is a national etiquette expert and a popular "go to" resource to the modern executive. She travels nationally teaching corporations and universities in the finer points of manners and protocol. Diane is the owner of The Protocol School of Texas and the resident etiquette expert on a successful morning television show, SA Living, an NBC television affiliate. She is routinely quoted in national media outlets such as Real Simple, HGTV Magazine, The New York Times, CNN, Bloomberg Business Week, U.S. News & World Report, CBS Money Watch, Kiplinger's and Forbes. The latter publication previously named her blog one of the "Top 100 Websites for Women."
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