How often do you find yourself interrupting someone? Wishing they’d get to the point? Willing them to just stop talking!

 

The reasons why people ramble are many: they’re nervous; they haven’t structured their thoughts in advance; they’re thinking things through “out loud;” they’re lost in the detail and can’t see the big picture, etc.

 

Sometimes it’s hard not to finish people’s sentences to move things along. Time is short. Getting impatient with people who won’t get to the point is a totally natural reaction.

 

The trick is knowing what to do about it. Intervening effectively is a balancing act.

 

You need to steer the conversation where it needs to go and stay open to hear new information from the other person. And you need to do this in a way that doesn’t seem rude, impatient, or that could jeopardize your work relationships.

 

Susan Drumm, CEO Coach, shares three effective ways to deal with people who won’t get to the point.