Heres to a happy discussion

Updated on: Monday, September 07, 2009

With the Civil Services Main exams on the anvil, can the interview and group discussion be far behind? One of the tools used for eliminating candidates before the final interview and also by companies as the first criterion for screening candidates, the group discussion (GD) is a very important facet of the Civils. Says J Saha, HR Head of a telecom major, “A GD is an important method of assessing how a person puts forwards his views.”

The topics of a GD can be varied and can be anything under the sun like, “The Impact of the Internet on the young generation” or “To survive in this civilised world one needs to be a hypocrite.”

But what if you find the topic really difficult to fathom? What should you do? They key to survival in such a situation is not to panic. Shekhar Niyogi, education and career consultant, Education Unlimited, observes, “Once a company asked an interviewee to speak on a topic which was quite bizarre. It was “Pink Pyjamas Flying High on the Red Fort.” Many interviewees did not know what the topic meant, when one boy interpreted pink pyjamas as women, flying on top as ‘making a mark’ and Red Fort as ‘something of significance.’ Therefore, the interpretation of the topic became — ‘women making a mark in significant aspects in life.’ From then on it was easy! Niyogi suggests that when a topic is difficult you should not “reveal your emotions.”

Adds Saha, “After all a good manager never lets stress get to him. He stays calm and composed under all circumstances.” Another misconception that most students have is that if one starts (begins first) the GD then he gets an edge over others. Nothing can be further from the truth. Remember it is a “high risk, high return” strategy. By speaking first, a speaker brings the focus upon himself so it is absolutely pertinent that what he says makes complete sense. If he does not, then he automatically gets negative marking.

Tuning in to the topic by listening carefully is also important. Students often start without listening to the topic properly. This is a gross mistake. Explains Abhishek Sur, an MBA student, “At one of the placement interviews, we were asked to speak on “The Impact of the Internet on India.” Instead of speaking about the advantages and disadvantages of the Net, one of the participants began focusing on the disadvantages alone. Naturally, he was torn apart by the other speakers.”

Niyogi suggests that if you have difficulty understanding a topic there is nothing you can do at this stage but listen to the others. “The best thing is to listen carefully to other people and grasp the meaning of the topic. The sooner you are able to do so, the better. Then you can jump onto the bandwagon and display your knowledge.” However, do remember that when a panel gives a factual topic, it is trying to judge you on your general knowledge. “When the topic is abstract and you do not know what to make of it, then remember that everyone is in the same boat. The beauty of an abstract topic is that it is totally open to interpretation and there is no real right or wrong argument,” says Niyogi. So go on, don’t panic — remember if you are calm and focussed you can discuss almost any GD topic in the world!

Heres to a happy discussion

More Education news