Dialogue At Work – The Dynamic Introvert’s Advantage
Dialogue at Work – The Dynamic Introvert’s Advantage
Recently I was asked to share some suggestions for ways to draw out introverts in a group setting in order to enhance learning for themselves as well as for others. I quickly thought about a few different facilitation tools that would work (the nominal group technique is one) and then I remembered DIALOGUE.
When I first read about using dialogue back in the 1990’s the idea really resonated with me. In hindsight I think this was because, as an introvert, I struggled to get my voice heard above the cacophony of noise in most of the meetings that I attended.
Introverts often struggle to be heard in meetings. Given our personality differences it should come as no surprise that introverts and extroverts communicate differently. Extroverts tend to talk more often, more quickly and more confidently while introverts listen more than they speak and may appear tentative and less confident.
Dialogue is an often overlooked facilitation tool that enhances learning and makes it possible for everyone to share their ideas and experiences. Dialogue is easy to learn but it takes a bit of practice to be able to use it effectively.
What is dialogue? According to the Cambridge online dictionary dialogue is a “conversation that is written for a book, play, or film”.
I’m using a somewhat different definition of dialogue in today’s blog post.
Dialogue in this sense is a type of group communication that encourages participants to slow down, be in the moment and really listen to what everyone is saying. It is often used in situations where there is conflict or as William Isaacs, author of Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together, describes it, “dialogue is more than just the exchange of words, but rather the embrace of different points of view—literally the art of thinking together”.
Here is a list of ground rules that are typically used in a dialogue session:
- Listen and speak without judgement
- Acknowledge each speaker
- Respect differences
- Suspend your role and status
- Avoid cross-talk
- Focus on learning
- Check your assumptions
If you are an introvert and want to change the way your meetings are run so that you can “get a word in edgewise” you might introduce the idea of dialogue and offer to organize the first session. If your company or group already uses dialogue on a regular basis I would appreciate hearing about your experiences.
Here are two books that I’ve found useful and I’m sure there are many more resources available on the internet:
On Dialogue by David Bohm published in 1996 and Perspectives on Dialogue: Making Talk Developmental for Individuals and Organizations by Nancy M. Dixon also published in 1996.
And if you are an introvert you probably have an advantage when it comes to using dialogue because you are wired to slow down and listen before you speak.