GROUP DISCUSSION

QUALITIES OF A SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE

Be Confident and exuberant in approach. possess Views logically, precise and rational. Positive body language, eloquent and fluent in presentation. Fits himself well into the image of deserving  candidates.

Mental And Social Skills

• Presents himself nicely-both physically and intellectually, verbally and non-verbally.

• Keeps himself aware of current political, social, religious, scientific  and economical issues.

• Clear expression and speaks in an organized way.

• Shows good presence of mind,  spontaneous but logical.

• Good knowledge of the subject with novel ideas.

• Ready to learn and is of preserving kind.

• Unfeigned approach and exhibits enthusiasm and honesty.

• Is ready to express himself on anything under the sun.

• Is confident, bold and precise.

• Puts forward his views with adroitness,  cleverness and clarity.

• Involves the group in discussion without indulging in mutual talks.

• Thinks before speaking.

• Calm and cool speaker, speaks with clarity and audible voice.

• Ensures that the thought process is not going out of track.

• Positive thinker and is well aware of his strength.

• Sincerely works to hit the target.

• Uses his skills to the best of his ability.

• Has the capability of making others silent by his rational arguments.

• Selects right and unoffending words to put forward his views.

• Is straight forward but do not offend his group members as well as the evaluator.

• Synchronize well his verbal and non-verbal communications.

• Has trustworthy, natural and pleasing behavior in harmony with the body language.

• Has persuasive and influential abilities.

• Has a power to leave a marked impression on his listeners.

• Presents his points logically, systematically, coherently and convincingly.

• Proves his points and calm under pressure.

• Displays elegance, politeness, court and patience.

• Enthusiast  but self-controlled.

• Co-operative and keeps the team united.

• Adept and co-operative.

• Gives others a fair chance to speak.

• A very good listener.

• Has the ability to lead the team.

• Is able to fit into the group, bind it together as a single entity and influence the group towards the attainment of desired goals.

• Conscious about the fact that the fact that he is been constantly observed. Prepares well for the Group Discussion with the help of family and friends.

PERSONAL PREPRATION REQUIRED FOR EFFICIENT PARTICIPATION IN GROUP DISCUSSION

In order to participate in a Group Discussion, there are certain aspects that need to be prepared. A participant must know how to collect and present facts, he must be able to convince and persuade others, and he also must be able to make his points clearly and forcefully when to do so the spur of the moment.

HOW TO COLLECT AND PRESENT FACTS

Start forming your own views. It sounds strange as everyone has his own views, so what us new in it! However it has been seen in the majority of the Group Discussion that the participants remain dumb or stuck for the ideas when their turns come. Sometimes the simply try to copy down the ideas which has been put forward by the co-members, often without understanding them fully. But it is very important to be noble in approach. One of the most important sources of building your own views is reading. The variety and newness of ideas that come forth from a participant are evidence of the wide reading that he does.

The second thing one can do to form his view to talk with different people. If a person is alert in conversation, he will be able to collect all the sorts of actual facts and “slices of life’ which can be fitted into his discussions. Talking with different people gets you exposed to differ views which simply adds new  weapon to your  armoury. It is always advisable to acquaint yourself with verity of new ideas.

Read at least one national newspaper everyday and read thought-provoking books that deal with current issues regularly. It must be kept in mind that one should not simply read but study the newspapers articles. When you are well read you are well informed and when you are well informed you can express yourself in a better and effective way.

CONVINCING AND PERSUADING DURING GROUP DISCUSSION

In a group discussion you do not have much time to indulge in long and argumentative speeches. It is only in the limited time you must put forward your views and ideas with tact and precision that is communication both verbal and non-verbal should be strong and effective. Opinion of others should be respected.

Use every chance you get to speak effectively, show your enthusiasm while speaking show proper voice inflection and pitch and speak neither too fast nor too slow. One should speak gently but firmly, If we believe in what we are saying, our own convictions will help us to be enthusiastic advocates of our course.

Be persuasive, but never try to force your opinion on others. Persuasion comes from a Latin word which means ‘through gentleness or sweetness’. The aim of persuasion is to make your listeners do what you are proposing. Whenever we try to force our opinion on others we create a negative environment for ourselves. Discussion in such a situation may turn violent and offensive.

A persuasive manner on the other hand, gets a gradual unfolding; it appeals to the heart and works on the will. Appeal in such a way that it should touch the emotions of listeners. Above all, in order to persuade others, we must listen carefully, and try to understand the other person’s point of view.

WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE

• Don’t try to seclude yourself from the group. Take initiatives to be friendly.

• Share your experience with other members of the group. Regard the discussion group a cooperative enterprise.

• While sharing your experience be honest, share only your first hand experiences.

• Adopta  concise approach. Do not try to present more than one point at a time but express yourself clearly. Remember that too many words can clutter he information.

• Don’t try to be theoretical, be pragmatic. Your intention should be to arrive at definite conclusion. You must supplement our arguments with practical instances each one’s experience is unique and only he or she can narrate it truly. Hence, each one must participate fully in the discussion.

• Be attentive towards others and listen to them carefully. Think on what has been said by others and try to find out the exact meaning of the said words also try to find out the question behind the question and the feeling and intention behind the said words. Try to read his facial expression and body language as well.

• But be careful that your thinking process do not clouded by the viewpoint of others. Keep your mind open and constantly pursue to move the discussion forward without losing the actual essence of discussion. Analyze the points which have been put one ear on what is being said and the other on the problem or issue and what you can add to it.

• Never try to make your group members feel humiliated. Contribute in a positive way, for example, if you have some new points under your sleeve, say it courteously that the problem can be seen with different angles too instead of saying I am surprised that none of us has been the problem with his angle. Be productive in a approach rather that being destructive.

• In a single discussion you will get more than one chance to speak so make your points more effective in every opportunity you get. You can do it in several ways. You may link your subject to the post, relate it to the present and project it to the future or you could make your point, give reasons for it, and illustrate it with examples as far as possible from your own experience, and in concluding sentence stress the point once more.

• In evaluating the discussion, the question to be asked is not “Is everybody talking?” but “Is everybody thinking?”.  Remember we are not here to teach or to be taught. And never try to carry the discussion single handedly. It is a team work and thus the quest for the right conclusion should be combined effort. Remember communication is two way process so wait for the feedbacks and respond in accordance with that.

KEY TO SUCCESS IN A GROUP DISCUSSION

This is to help you to develop your cognitive process and enrich you with the prerequisites of a successful candidate. This will help you to enhance your communication skills and to make it more effective. Inculcating the following traits in your personality will make you stand distinctively in the group.

What manners more is what you speak and how you speak rather than how much you speak. So don’t just go only for the quantity of the content but look forward to improve the quality of the content. It is a serious case of misconception of you think that the most vociferous individual in the group gets selected. Be precise and do not make the discussion a never ending talkathon.

• ATTENTION: Always pay attention to the opinion of other candidates. You are being judged not only for you knowledge but also for your ability to reason with others. Do not commit the mistake of carrying the discussion single handedly, it is a negative idea.

• LANGUAGE SELECTION: Use of parliamentary and respectful language is always advisable. If you want to show your disagreement there is no point in doing it arrogance. It can be done in a polite and courteous manner is effective way and that also without offending anyone. Remember that a group discussion judges your ability to interact with a group even in situation.

• CONTROL YOUR EMOTIONS AND BE WELL INFORMED: Always revolve around the topic. Do not give vague arguments, substantiate your points with relevant examples. Never let your emotions rule over your rationality. Prejudices and biaseness are least appreciated thing in a Group discussion. It is compulsorily recommended to have good knowledge of the world around you.

• SILENT OR NOT INTERESTED: your silence can be mistaken as your lack of knowledge, interest and many other such traits. Maintain a steady pace and show your enthusiasm and take initiatives. Neither be a loud speaker nor be a dumb beer.

• PIN POINT YOUR WORDS: Do not try to beat about the bush, be precise and concise in your approach. You need to deliver you presentation substantially with in stimulated time so avoid superfluous details.

• LEARN TO HAVE FUN UNDER STRESS: Enjoy the discussion. Remember nervousness and lack of confidence takes you away from the list of successful candidate. You are being selected on many grounds and your confidence and presentation skills are the first for most traits among them.

• Written by Lohit Seth.
• In category Engineering.
• 14 years ago.

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