Campus Recruitment – Group Discussion – Skills Required For Group Discussion

Campus Recruitment – Group Discussion – Skills Required For Group Discussion

Skills Required For Group Discussion
Group Discussions need preparation before hand. Although the discussion might be on the spot, having some skill sets would go a long way in performing well in the Group Discussion. The following skills are imperative for a candidate to succeed in a Group Discussion.
Body Language:

• Holistic communication includes verbal as well as non-verbal communication.Non-verbal communication conveys ideas by means of body language and gestures.
• This form of communication truly reflects an individual’s response to a situation or topic. An individual for example may be speaking something but unless his thoughts are exemplified by his body language, the overall communication becomes drab and ineffective.
• One must dress well for success. Dressing formally and modestly for an interview conveys that a person is well groomed and pleasant in appearance and personality.
• Being polite in one’s tone reflects one’s positive attitude towards the situation. It also exhibits the ability to remain composed and unruffled even whilst presented with a challenging situation.
• Positive body language includes maintaining eye contact, sitting upright, smiling at others and affirming that you are actively listening to them by nodding your head and using your hands effectively to convey gestures.
• Negative body language includes talking frowning, yawning, cracking knuckles, shaking limbs, looking away from the crowd, looking down, slouching and unnecessarily laughing way too loudly.

Group Behavior:

• Group behavior reflects the ability of a person to conduct himself within a group. This behavior shows how well a person can behave within a team of people who have diverse personality traits.
• Acceptable group behavior includes maintaining composure even when others criticize your opinion, avoiding personal comments etc.

Appropriate Language:

• While participating in a Group Discussion, it is preferable if one avoids jargon or heavy vocabulary.
• Using simple, yet grammatically correct sentences to convey one’s ideas makes the discussion interesting and persuasive.
• One should avoid using unconstitutional language.
• Ambiguity while expressing one’s ideas will result in participants getting confused or overwhelmed with the ideas that are presented to them.

Leadership Skills:

• Leadership skills demonstrate how effectively one would lead a team in future. The candidate who demonstrates the best leadership skills is immediately noticed by the interviewers.
• Good leadership skills include opening the Group Discussion, aiding other participants to express their opinions without sounding insulting, not dominating the discussion, addressing people by names and collaborating the ideas that are thrown across by candidates.

Listening Skills:

• Effective listening is when a candidate comprehends what is not said along with what is explicitly stated. It also includes understanding the body language.
• Listening skills lead to fewer mistakes, increased productivity, customer satisfaction and better information sharing.
• Effective listening centers around focusing on understanding the message.
• It shows one’s attentiveness to the discussion and also the precision involved in decoding bodily gestures.
• People who have effective listening skills are perceived to make good leaders.
• Effective listening includes taking off from where the last candidate paused; It promotes continuity of ideas and thoughts.
• Effective listening helps a candidate to familiarize himself with the topic in case he is not able to understand the topic for the Group Discussion.
• Listening is mutual. If you are an attentive listener, the other candidates will listed to your views.

Knowledge:

• Knowledge is any information that is known.
• Knowledge cannot be acquired overnight and it has to be a slow but a steady process.
• Reading extensively contributes to the accrual of knowledge in various areas.
• In a Group discussion, having a good know how in the topic under discussion will prove to be an icing on the cake for the candidate.
• Such candidate can express himself confidently, with authority and invoke interest of other group members.
• He may also give direction to the others in the group who have little or no knowledge about the topic under discussion. This speaks volumes about his leadership abilities.
• A candidate should read articles on various subjects ranging from current affairs, science, humanities, finance, literature etc.
• Facts should be presented systematically and analytically rather than mere representation.
• This proves that apart from having basic knowledge, a candidate can articulate his ideas also in a given topic.

Presentation:

• Presenting one’s views is the trickiest part of a Group Discussion.
• Sometimes, a candidate having excellent command over the subject given, may fair poorly because of the lack of presentation skills.
• Ideas should be presented in a smooth, sequential manner, with the introduction in the beginning, followed by main ideas and a rational conclusion at the end.
• An idea should be picked up from where it was left and the continuity should indicate smooth flow of the discussion.
• Going off the track or discussing trivial, unimportant or unconnected points results in poor Group Discussion.
• Presentation should be informal, in a simple language and relevance to existing situations wherever possible should be expressed.
• So that the discussion becomes exciting and interesting rather than a formality that is obliged to be completed.

Personal Grooming:
Your appearance may not reflect your academic grades, but it does reflect your attitude. Imagine you go dressed to a Group Discussion in casuals with a sloppy hairstyle. . You wouldn’t be giving a cool dude impression, instead, you would be throwing away all chances of being selected, as it given an impression of a careless, always-in-a-hurry person. Use the following tips to ensure that you are appropriately groomed for the interview
For Women:

• Wear subtle shades and not loud gaudy colors.
• Maintain well manicured nails with mellow or neutral nail shades.
• Wear sparse make-up
• Wear neatly ironed clothes.
• Maintain a professional hairstyle.
• Wear minimal jewelry and a mild perfume.

For Men:

• Dress formal.
• Wear a good pair of formal shoes, coordinated belt.
• Have a professional hair cute done.
• Nails must be well manicured and clean.
• Wear neatly ironed clothes.
• Do not wear jewelry. Wear a mild perfume.
• Last but not the least, smile confidently, as this attribute would take you a long way in being successful!

Preparing for the Group Discussion
Preparing for a group discussion well in advance helps a candidate in participating in the Group Discussions with interest and confidence. However, preparation should not be limited to reading and accruing knowledge alone, One should learn to manage time, talk well, master the language, learn appropriate body gestures and keep practicing repeatedly in a group. Students may form an informal group amongst themselves in their colleges and schedule few hours every week to practice group discussions. Forums like Toastmaster’s are a great platform to develop your speaking skills that aid you in the GD.