Conversations in international meetings are often fast-paced. This means it can be difficult to keep up or react in the right way when it is your turn to speak, especially if English is not your first language. And when you do speak, you may well be interrupted. It is therefore important to have some strategies that you can use to deal with interruptions both politely and professionally.
Questions
As you read the dialogue below, think about the answers to these three questions:
1. How does Anna deal with Olivia’s interruption?
2. How does Olivia deal with Sven’s interruption?
3. How does Harry deal with Chris’s interruption of Sven?
Thank you all for coming. As you know, we’re facing a problem with our project and need to find a solution. Anna, can you please tell us what you found out when you looked into the problem?
Sure, Harry. I found out that the quality processes are not up to scratch and that we…
[interrupts] Hold on a second, Anna. It’s not our fault. We tried to…
[interrupts] I’ll just need two minutes to explain what I found out, Olivia. I’ll be done in a moment. Then we can hear what everyone thinks.
Fine, but it’s not our fault…
I’m not saying it is. Anyway, as I was explaining, we found that the quality processes are indeed being followed. It’s just that they need to be updated. The project has changed since we designed it, and the quality processes need to apply to the new project approaches.
Right. Over to you, Olivia. Tell us about this from the quality perspective.
Anna may be right. The quality processes were designed with the initial project in mind. But as you know, the project changed and the scope was extended. Now, we need to…
[interrupts] Sorry, Olivia, do you mind if I interrupt briefly?
Sure. Go ahead, Sven. I imagine you have something to say about this. But I’d like to come back to my overall point afterwards.
No problem, Olivia. Thanks. Harry, you might remember that when the scope of the project widened, we did ask if we needed to review any of these processes. But the priority then was to move ahead with the project quickly.
Yes, that’s right. It was important to stick to the timeline despite the widening of the project scope.
This meant that some key areas, such as quality processes, weren’t updated. And now we’re in a situation in which…
[interrupts] Hold on, Sven. You can’t simply use that excuse…
[interrupts] Sorry, Chris, please let Sven finish. You can be next.
Thanks, Harry. So, we have this problem that the quality processes didn’t pick up. As I see it, we have two things to do now. First, we need to solve the immediate problem. And secondly, we need to update the quality processes.
I agree. But before we decide what to do, Chris, you wanted to say something, and Anna wanted to finish her point. OK. Chris, you first…
Answers
Here are the answers to the three questions we asked:
- Anna signals that she wants to keep talking and will then hand over to Olivia. (“I’ll just need two minutes to explain what I found out, Olivia. I’ll be done in a moment.”)
- Olivia hands over to Sven but says she’d like to continue after Sven has finished his point. (“Sure. Go ahead, Sven. … But I’d like to come back to my overall point afterwards.”)
- Harry facilitates the discussion and asks Chris to wait. (“Sorry, Chris, please let Sven finish. You can be next.”)
Using imperative verb forms
We can use imperative verb forms to give instructions to others. This form is also often used when dealing with interruptions in meetings. Look at these examples from the dialogue:
- Hold on a second, Anna.
- Tell us about this from a quality perspective.
- Go ahead, Sven.
- Hold on, Sven.
The imperative form is simply the base form of the verb.
Useful phrases for dealing with interruptions
A. Avoiding interruptions
- I’ll just need two minutes to explain this point.
- Let me tell you about this topic and then we can discuss it.
- I can explain this in two sentences.
- If you have any questions or comments, I can address them when I’ve finished this section of my presentation.
B. Not allowing an interruption
- Sorry, I’m almost finished.
- Could I just finish this point?
- I’ll be done in a moment.
- I’m sorry, Olivia. I didn’t interrupt you. Please let me finish.
- Sorry, please let … finish.
C. Allowing an interruption
- Sure, Sven, go ahead.
- But I’d like to come back to my overall point afterwards.
- OK. I know you’ve been waiting.
- Yes, I imagine you have something to say about this topic.
D. Facilitating a meeting
- Sorry, Chris, please let Sven finish.
- Let’s allow Sven to finish his point.
- You can be next, Chris.
- Can we please try not to interrupt each other?
Key tips!
- Acknowledge the interruption, then continue or hand over.
- Use non-verbal communication to prevent interruptions (for example, eye contact or a raised finger).
- Help others who are less assertive by facilitating the discussion.
- Limit the length of time that participants are allowed to speak. This reduces the risk of being interrupted.
- Always be polite and respectful and try to avoid interrupting others.
Unterbrechungen in einem Gespräch sind keine Seltenheit. Wie du in einer solchen Situation auf Englisch agieren und reagieren kannst, zeigen wir dir hier.