What are the ways to enter a Group Discussion(GD)?

Supportive statement - We can support another candidate’s ideas using excellent transitional phrases like ‘I agree with what he says…’ or ‘I would like to add…’ and then logically proceed with your argument.

Increasing volume - The most common approach to enter a GD is by raising your voice. It is, however, only recommended if you have sound arguments, clarity, and topic understanding. It shouldn’t sound like shouting.

Noise level decrease - When the voice levels have dropped, it is the ideal time to be noticed. But don’t hold your breath. You’ll have to barge your way in if the noise doesn’t go down after a few minutes.

Asking a question - When you ask questions, you have the opportunity to draw the attention of the group. You can then add your inputs and ask follow-up questions after that.

**After the person has stopped -**Interjections must be made at the appropriate time. It’s unusual for a candidate to give anyone a chance to speak before making their points. You’ll have a better chance of winning if you enter after they’ve finished their points.

Group Discussion happens to be one of those processes that candidates rank as a confusing and a tedious one, given that if the members don’t come at a common ground to have a meaningful discussion and chaos ensues, the whole group is at the risk of getting eliminated from the process.
Apart from this, candidates with good points might also fail to make an impact for not being able to communicate for multiple reasons like too much noise, dominant nature of some members who want to always control the flow of the discussion (it may also backfire on them though). However, many candidates fail to make a point because they don’t fully understand when the best time is to enter the discussion, as they fear coming out as someone who is interrupting someone.
Candidates must follow some basic tenets while participating in a Group Discussion and looking forward to making a point:

  1. When not able to start the discussion itself, look for an opening when a speaker who has been speaking for some time waits to take a breath. This won’t be considered as rude because you were trying to make some point keeping in mind the paucity of time and to include multiple viewpoints in the prescribed period.

  2. If you know you have some important fact or point to share, raise your voice so people make for you to have the central stage. This often works in an offline setup, where people are sitting close to each other and will eventually pause to make way for such an appeal.

  3. You may also begin by appreciating a point made by someone and then present your reason to support it. It places you as a good listener with an analytical mind to find a common ground and present your side of views with it.

  4. Sometimes, you can also use the chaos or noise in the discussion to make your point by first trying to remind people to maintain the sanctity of the discussion and giving everybody a chance to speak in a reasonable manner and then slipping in your points meanwhile. This will make you look like as someone who can bring order to a chaotic situation.

  5. You can always use to summarize the whole discussion and while explaining the various points of others, make your own points stand out about how you personally felt about the points.

  6. Whenever you want to disagree with any point, be respectful and try to frame your counterargument as a question or doubt and ask everyone else their stand on this, while making clear about your stand.