The usual suspects can ruin meetings - Harvey Schachter

You meet them routinely in meetings. The Monopolizer. The Tangent Talker. The Cynic. Even worse, sometimes you find yourself adopting that persona. San Francisco consultant Craig Harrison suggests on the Coachville site that you should be alert to this crazy (and potentially dangerous) cast of characters that can ruin your meetings:

The Monopolizer: This person thinks he or she is the only one with wisdom on subjects, and everybody else is there simply to listen. Their aggressiveness and rudeness keep others from contributing, unless facilitators and other meeting participants indicate an interest in hearing from others.

The Tangent Talker: This person hijacks the topic of the group by taking discussions off onto topics unrelated to the issue at hand. The chair should remind people to confine themselves to the issue at hand and extraneous items can be "parked" in a "parking lot" list of matters to be addressed in future.

The Devil's Advocate: This person relishes taking the opposing view on everything, often beginning with, "Just for the sake of argument ..." The more unpopular the stance, the more exciting it can be for them. Recognize the value of hearing opposing views, but try to remind the person that the agenda and time constraints doesn't allow it on every matter.

The Cynic: This person insists, on everything: "It won't work." Challenge them to think like a Devil's Advocate, and suppose it could work - or even to argue the other position, as if it was their own.

The Fence Sitter: They can't make a decision and are swayed by every argument, providing fodder for The Cynic and The Devil's Advocate. "Try to cajole them to action," Mr Harrison says. "Ask them their opinions on matters to draw them out and get them on record."

The Brown Noser: This obsequious soul bends over backwards to ingratiate himself to the boss. Try to elicit their ideas and preferences before asking others, as a way of drawing them out.

The Pandora's Box Opener: These folks have to tackle issues that are emotional or touchy for others (often re-opening ones you thought were settled). The best cure is a firm "Let's not go there" from the chair, or "Let's cross that bridge when we get there," or "That's a hornets' nest we don't need to disturb."

The Attackers: These bullies deftly mix negativity with personal attacks. The facilitator needs to refocus them to be positive, removing the sting from their words and avoiding an adversarial approach in meetings. Any meeting participant should be able to stop the meeting when attacked personally.

The Jokers: Their constant joking can diminish others' serious ideas or suggestions. The meeting chair must intervene when their humour becomes disruptive.