Are you an “Interrupter?”

Are you an “Interrupter?”

The neighborhood rooster didn’t get the memo about Daylight Savings Time last week.

It’s bad enough that he usually commences crowing 5 am on the dot everyday with out fail.

However, when we turned our clocks back for Daylight Savings Time last week, 4 am became his new “go time.”

Mr. Rooster interrupted. Mr. Rooster and also roused my husband, who reacted with a Crumlin-Dublin expression. Then because my husband is is a MAN, he was able to turn his brain off and went back to sleep.?

Not me. I lay there thinking about the Mr. Rooster and my go-to mantra, “ I will use this experience for something.”

Most of us are also guilty of this annoying habit, whether we like to admit it or not. Unlike Mr. Rooster, who interrupts the neighborhood’s sleep patterns because of Mother Nature’s programming, Humans can increase our self-awareness and do something about it.

So, I thought about how Mr. Rooster had brought my attention to a challenge that we experience during our daily conversations?—?interruptions.

What triggers our need to interrupt?

  • A desire to be right or make a point
  • Impatience or time pressure
  • A need to complete a train of thought
  • A desire to assert power
  • A lack of self-awareness
  • A fear of forgetting what you want to say

People interrupt for a variety of reasons, including:

  • To assert power: Interrupting can be a way to demonstrate dominance in a conversation.
  • To complete a thought: Someone might interrupt to add to what the other person is saying or to clarify something.
  • Mental health conditions: People with ADHD or other mental health conditions may be more likely to interrupt.
  • Anxiety: Someone might interrupt if they’re anxious about continuing a conversation.
  • Narcissism: Narcissists might feel the need to dominate conversations.
  • Social awkwardness: Someone who doesn’t know the conversation etiquette might interrupt.
  • Short-term memory: Someone with short-term memory challenges might interrupt if they suddenly remember something.
  • Extroversion: Extroverts might want to move a conversation forward.

What happens when we interrupt someone?

. Interrupting can make others feel irritated, frustrated, or angry.?

. It can also make people feel disrespected and

. make the interrupter appear rude or egotistical.

. It could influence the other party’s interest in having future conversations.

What actions can we take to minimize and avoid our need to interrupt?

· You can begin your conversation agreeing on how you will let the other person know you’d like to make a point. ( ie. You will put your hand up or lift a pen?—?aka have manners)

· To reduce interruptions, try waiting a second after someone finishes speaking before you speak.

· You can also take a note if you’re worried that you’ll forget what you wanted to say

. Use your energy to listen

· You can also practice thinking, “Nothing I plan to say is so important that it can’t wait for a few minutes.”

Set ground rules for your selve and others and learn more about the art of listening!

NOTE - Please visit my website at jryanpartners.com/blog to view this article's resources and additional information about how to conduct reasonable conversations so you can develop and sustain productive relationships.

Debra O'Connor

EVP and CFO at Arch Capital Services Inc

3 个月

Love this, Jules. Very helpful to use the rooster as the interrupter.

回复
Jerome Deroy, CPC

Certified Professional Coach | Leadership Development | Team Alignment | Onboarding | Employee Engagement | Sales Training | Culture Building

4 个月

Great article, Julienne B. Ryan, I love that you took the experience and did something with it! So relevant to what we do at Narativ Inc when we prepare people to listen before telling a story. We often think we have to get coached or ready to perform when we know we're going to be called on to speak. However, it's the listening that needs coaching. Your article's examples of why people might interrupt are a wonderful resource to investigate how we listen at any given time. Thank you!

Joe T.

"Likes" receive comments-Never use AI in my comments-only accepting invitations to those w/ 500+ connections-You will need to Like my Posts-most importantly both of us must Benefit from this Connection

4 个月

As we get older/more mature...we realize we do Not need to interrupt others and their viewpoints-many Selfish people I have found-was in straight commission Real Estate Sales-met with hundreds- eventually Learned to intently Listen and clarify what others were saying -All of us want someone to just Listen to Us(even for a shorter time)-most Failed in Sales-their Listening skills were not up to Par-they were probably Selfish lol

Heather Walker, Ph.D.

Organizational Psychologist | Advising executives on how to keep promising employees ????????

4 个月

Love this! I grew up with a neighborhood rooster too—one that crowed all day and night. It really did interrupt everything! ?? Thanks for the flashback and the reminder to tame our own “inner roosters”!

George Grombacher

Present | Thinking | Doing

4 个月

Great tips on minimizing interruptions!

要查看或添加评论,请登录

Julienne B. Ryan的更多文章

社区洞察

其他会员也浏览了