How To Interrupt An Audience To Start A Meeting Or Presentation

Have you ever run a meeting or presentation where your audience continues speaking after they have taken a seat?

Have you ever felt unsure of how to interrupt them to get your meeting started?

This video offers verbal (spoken) and non-verbal (unspoken) options on how to do that.

It also provides the reasons for holding or having a meeting, as well as offering reasons why audience participation is usually a good thing. However, there are certain circumstances where we will need to interrupt our audience because it is hampering (harming) the success of our meeting.

Naturally, not being able to start a meeting on time will prevent your meeting from being a success, and so it is the first occasion when we will need to interrupt our audience during the meeting.

It is also the first time you would need to assert (show) yourself as the meeting leader or risk losing control of your meeting because if you start weakly your attendees will run right over you.

Consider how you would feel if you attended a meeting or presentation and the meeting lead (chair) starts by nervously and quietly mumbling something. Would you feel that that person has confidence and that they will know what they are talking about? Have they shown you, from the start, that they will lead the meeting properly and not waste your time? It is most likely that you will view them as unprofessional and that you will then not respect them, their work, their ability to lead the meeting or presentation, or their opinions going forward. So, it is vital that you get it right first time by preparing how you would handle it in advance, until it becomes an automatic part of your meeting leadership skill.

Links to other related content lists:

  1. Business Emails
  2. Business Meetings
  3. Business Presentations
  4. Business English Tests
  5. Business Lessons Learned
  6. Videos

Want to see more? View our other Business English articles by clicking on this link

Subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking on this link

If you would like to receive an email every time we publish a new article…please complete the below form and click ‘Submit Form’:

Email me each time Optimum Business English publishes a new post

Posted by optimumbusines

Lyn has worked in various business areas of large, internationally-recognised, multinational telecommunication corporate organisations since 2004, gaining significant expertise in the business language of each. Her role regularly combined the functions of internal communications, training and change management on large projects and other strategic initiatives. She also has specific experience in: – Creating HR policies and procedures – Talent recruitment lead creation procedures – Process creation, optimisation and re-engineering in AP, sourcing and HR – Migrating and managing SOX and EWC compliance, and implementations – Global and regional Shared Service Centre management and implementations – Bid Management – EcoMetric assessment training and certification procedures – Internship creation and management – Full SAP, IFRS15, Concur and S4 Hana implementations QUALIFICATIONS She has a four-year Higher Diploma in Education from the University of Natal, in secondary (high school) second language teaching. She also has a Bachelor of Arts degree, from the University of South Africa (UNISA), majoring in Psychology. She is a certified EcoMetrist and has an Advanced 120 Hour TEFL certificate. Her combination of international business experience provides practical, professional know-how, combined with excellent qualifications, ensures an effective all-round, expert approach to training.

Reader interactions

12 Replies to “How To Interrupt An Audience To Start A Meeting Or Presentation”

  1. I do agree with all the ideas you have introduced on your post They are very convincing and will definitely work Still the posts are very short for newbies May just you please prolong them a little from subsequent time Thank you for the post

    Reply

  2. If you desire to get a good deal from this piece of writing then you
    have to apply these strategies to your won work.

    Reply

  3. This blog was… how do you say it? Relevant!!

    Finally I have found something which helped me. Cheers!

    Reply

  4. What i do not understood is in truth how you are not actually a lot more smartly liked than you may be now This topic produced me individually imagine it from numerous numerous angles Your own stuffs nice All the time care for it up

    Reply

  5. I have been surfing online more than 3 hours today yet I never found any interesting article like yours It is pretty worth enough for me In my opinion if all web owners and bloggers made good content as you did the web will be much more useful than ever before

    Reply

  6. Usually I do not read article on blogs however I would like to say that this writeup very compelled me to take a look at and do so Your writing taste has been amazed me Thanks quite nice post

    Reply

  7. You’re so interesting! I don’t suppose I have read through
    anything like that before. So great to discover somebody with some genuine thoughts on this issue.
    Seriously.. thanks for starting this up. This website is one thing that is required on the internet, someone with a bit of originality!

    Reply

  8. Simply wish to say your article is as amazing.
    The clearness in your post is just spectacular and i could assume
    you are an expert on this subject. Fine with your permission let me to grab your feed to keep
    updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please carry on the enjoyable
    work.

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much Lucile for your support.

      Reply

  9. I am sure this article has touched all the internet users, its really
    really good article on building up new web site.

    Reply

  10. My brother suggested I might like this website. He was entirely right.
    This submit truly made my day. You cann’t
    imagine just how a lot time I had spent for this information! Thanks!

    Reply

  11. Thank you for the auspicious writeup It in fact was a amusement account it Look advanced to far added agreeable from you However how can we communicate

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *