What To Do When People Aren't Responding

Practical tips to get people talking

I'm sure we've all had that feeling. You're running a training course, trying to get some interaction, some discussion, even just some signs of consciousness... ...but it's not working!

No - one seems to be saying anything.

You ask questions, you look enthusiastic, you smile nicely, you beg ( well, maybe not quite ) but there's silence. What's happening?

At this point, some trainers blame themselves. They start to doubt their ability, they start to think there must be easier ways to make a living.

What can you do when this happens?

Well, first, let's think of the reasons why people might not be responding:

• They are tired
• They are bored
• They don't understand the questions you are asking
• They haven't understood anything you have said since you started
• They just don't want to be there
• It's just their learning style, they don't feel the need to say much when they are learning
• They feel intimidated about speaking in front of the whole group
• They feel intimidated because of someone else who is there ( e.g. their boss )
• They just don't like you much and don't feel like helping you out

I can't go into detail about all of these possibilities here, but the fact that there are so many options means that you need to take a number of approaches.

Firstly - you need to do the groundwork right from the start of the course.

You must make it clear that this is a participative course, that they will be encouraged to get involved. Your opening activity ( you did have one, didn't you? ) should reflect this.

You should have some sort of ice - breaker to help people to feel at ease with each other and to warm them up for interaction. You can't just start from cold and expect people to feel relaxed about contributing without easing them into it.

You should also have made a point of stressing the benefits of the course to them, not just telling them what the course will cover but exactly what they will get from it.

Ideally, you should have found out before the course what the participants wanted from it. You should also have found out whether they were volunteering to come or whether they were being sent. This has a huge impact on people's willingness to contribute.

You should have found out who was coming and what their positions and roles were so that you could get some clues as to whether there might be any possible tensions.

Secondly - you need to see one of your main roles as being to build rapport with the group. This involves showing that you know something about their situation, that you understand their concerns and that you are really concerned that they get something useful from the course.

You also need to be friendly and approachable.

By this point, you may be thinking, " So, if the group aren't responding, it's all my fault and it's too late to do anything about it! "

Well, not exactly, I'm just saying that there are a number of things you can do in advance to increase the chances of people responding when you want them to. Unfortunately, even if you do these things, there may still be other issues.

Thirdly - consider your questions. If you are asking a group questions and they are not responding, what sort of questions are you asking?

Are you asking mainly closed questions, which invite single word answers? You may think you are asking open questions but actually phrasing them in a closed way.

For example, " How do you think you could manage your time more effectively?" is an open question. But sometimes we unintentionally close a question by adding an option. For example, " How do you think you could manage your time more effectively? Do you think you could delegate more or use a To Do list? "

This is often an attempt to help people by suggesting some possibilities but the effect is to restrict their possible answers.

Sometimes questions may be vague or unclear so people don't see exactly what you want. Or you may have asked a multiple question.

For example, " What do you think about the way you currently carry out performance reviews? Do you think they are effective? What do you think you could do to improve them? "

A bit like the previous example, this leaves people unclear. You just asked three questions, which one do you want them to answer?

We tend to do this if we are thinking through the question while we are asking it instead of framing it in our heads first.

Another reason a group may not answer questions is because you simply don't allow them enough time. It takes quite a few seconds to think of an answer and then decide that you will say something. Often, trainers do not allow long enough. They feel uneasy standing there in silence and fill the space by moving on too quickly.

( Yes, is does seem as if I'm blaming the trainer here doesn't it? What I'm suggesting is that, if a group are not responding, it's often not because they are being awkward, it may be that the trainer is unwittingly contributing to the problem. )

Fourthly ( keep up ) - people may be reluctant to say much because they don't want to speak in front of the rest of the group. They may be a bit shy, they may have a reflective learning style which means that they don't tend to speak a lot when learning ( unlike some people who like to talk to develop their ideas ). Or they may be inhibited by someone else in the room.

You can get round some of these issues by changing the activity. Instead of asking people to answer in front of the group, let them work briefly in pairs or small groups to consider a question, then ask groups to report back. This reduces the pressure.

You can also allow people some individual reflection by letting them think about a question alone and making some notes rather than expecting them to say something off the top of their heads.

And fifthly - people can get tired or bored on courses, shocking but true. Make sure you allow plenty of breaks and change the activity regularly. Include movement, have various stimuli to keep people's attention and encourage them to drink plenty of water ( in which case you will need the breaks ).

Oh, and sixthly - if all else fails, you can ask them why they are not responding, perhaps individually during a break or as a group, depending on the level of rapport you feel you have developed.

Sometimes just saying, " I'm not getting much response at the moment, am I? What's the problem? " can work, although it is slightly risky.

Well, I think I've covered most of the points. If that seems a tall order, I'm sorry, but it should show you that you have lots of options if people are not saying as much as you would like.

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