Group Discussion is one of the major selection rounds used by companies, educational institutes, and other organizations to check the candidate’s communication skills and ability to work in a team.

No organization is run by a single person. All the organizations work in groups, in teams and hence, group discussion has emerged to be an important aspect in the recruitment process.

Group discussion round gives the employers an idea of your overall personality. The way you speak, the way you interact in a group, the way you approach a given topic, your communication skills, etc.

Mostly in a recruitment process, you face a GD round with people you know nothing about. Your attitude in such a scenario of approaching strangers matters a lot.

There are a lot of points on the basis of which your performance in a GD is analyzed.

For example, if you start the discussion it is considered that you have leadership skills and ice-breaking quality. When you catch up with somebody else's point and support it with your own thoughts on it, you are called a good listener.

You display your empathy towards your teammates when you ask a shy member to give his/her opinion on the topic. This also shows that you care for everybody's view on the topic.

Your performance in a group discussion answers questions such as whether your attitude is positive or negative during the entire discussion? Is your approach solution-oriented?

Do you initiate the discussion? How strongly you bring up your point and support it with facts. Do you show aggression? Are you a good listener? How well you stick to the topic? Do you have the ability to bring the team back to the topic of discussion if the team drifts away from it? and so many more.

To crack this round it is important to know all the important aspects of it. And here are the 11 most important group discussion tips you must know.

Having these in mind while appearing for a GD round will surely help you perform to the best of your potential and increase your chances of getting selected.

11 tips that will help you crack the GD round:

1. Pay attention to your body language:

Maintain proper body language. Make sure you sit upright, use proper hand gestures while you speak, and show energy & enthusiasm in your body language.

Maintain eye contact with everyone while telling your points.

Try to avoid playing with your pen or stare blankly when other candidates are talking.

Look at them when they speak and listen carefully to what they say. This will help you to prevent repeating the points that are already being made.

Be attentive. Do not fold your arms or sit with your legs crossed. It shows that you are not interested in the discussion and might create a bad impression on the employer.

2. Be courteous with fellow speakers:

Make sure you’re courteous to others in the group because the recruiter might check your behavior, attitude, and team spirit.

Make a clear point but don't try to interrupt when others are talking. Try to understand the points the other candidates are making. Do not appear arrogant.

If you agree with someone's point, make sure you say that you agree with his/her point and would like to add something more to it.

If you don't, don't be harsh. Avoid being in the bad looks of your teammates. Humbly state the reason why you don't agree to a point and convince the team that your approach might work better.

Don't go on speaking alone without caring about others. Let others speak too. In fact, promote members who are a bit shy or nervous to speak up.

And, smile, it often works!

3. Be confident and keep adding good points:

It might often happen that the points you think of, are stated by somebody else in the group. In such a case you need not panic.

Instead, think of new points that you could add to the discussion.

Pick on the points made by other candidates and add your own thoughts to them. Mention any facts if you know.

This can create a good impression on the interviewing panel. Make sure you don't drift away from the topic.

Don't go on contradicting all the points made by other candidates. Remember, that it's not a debate. It's a discussion.

If you get stuck at a point and think that you're losing control of the situation, take a deep breath, close your eyes for a while, relax, and start again.

4. Ensure that your words make sense:

It is important that the points you are talking about will be sensible and relevant to the topic.

Blabbering irrelevant points can prove to be a disadvantage on your part. Choose your words wisely. Use facts and statements to support your points.

If you’re unaware of the topic, allow others to speak first. Take an idea from their points and try adding your own.

5. Take the initiative to start:

Try to initiate the group discussion, if possible.

Take a lead if you have enough knowledge about the topic.

By taking the initiative, you get the advantage to drive the entire discussion.

But make sure you have great points that will mark a good start to the discussion.

Give the discussion the direction you want. However, don't make a negative start. Focus on key points. Let others speak. Note their points and keep adding your own. Avoid contradicting yourself.

Taking the initiative to start the discussion can be advantageous for you, because "Well begun is a job half done!"

6. Use supporting facts and statements:

Using quotes or facts to support your points in a group discussion will prompt panelists to keep a note of your points.

Rather than interrupting others' points and contradicting them, try to enter the discussion by supporting their points with some examples.

Make sure that the facts or statistics you mention are correct and valid because someone may point out if you make a mistake and that will be a big disadvantage.

7. Participate in mock GDs beforehand:

Practice by participating in mock Group Discussions before your big day.

Take the initiative to express your thoughts and note down the areas that you lack in.

Try to improve on them. Choose a topic, practice with your group of friends, and take feedback from them.

Participating in group discussions will help you improve your communication skills, gain command of the English language, increase your vocabulary, and add up new things to your knowledge.

8. Brush up your GK:

Common topics for group discussion are picked up from newspapers or are related to current affairs.

You don't get to select a topic for your GD.

And so, it is very important to be aware of current affairs and trending topics of discussions.

Make sure you’re fully aware of what is going on in and around the country. Brush up your general knowledge, read the newspapers, or search for the common topics for GD in order to practice them.

Stay updated so that you will have enough knowledge to speak on a given topic.

9. Stay updated at all times:

It is important to keep yourself updated in today's age.

Subscribe to the news channels and go through the current affairs daily.

Read the newspaper, watch videos of various GD topics, and group discussion tips by experienced people.

Discuss it with your friends, it will help you to stay updated. Additionally, you can practice in front of a mirror and check for your body language and gestures which will help you to clear your GD round.

10. Show Teamspirit:

A group discussion requires team spirit, out-of-the-box thinking, communication skills, and leadership qualities.

A process where you keep your points, listen to others to reach a conclusion. You might agree upon some points and disagree with some.

Make sure you appreciate good points but don't criticize the ones you disagree with. Use affirmative sentences for disagreement such as 'I would like to add...', 'I agree with my friend...', 'I have another angle for the same'.... to show your teamwork and positive attitude.

11. Don't be aggressive:

One of the common mistakes you do in a GD round is being aggressive.

It is okay to have differences in opinions but make sure you don't get too aggressive while proving your own points.

Again, remember, this is a group discussion. Not a debate. Avoid showing your aggression through actions like dramatizations, banging the table, pointing the pen, criticizing others' points, using negative or abusive words, or enter into a one-to-one discussion.

You might think aggression is the way to state your points firmly but aggression leads to argument and you might lose an opportunity because of it. So, stay calm and be polite, all the time.

At the end of the discussion, comes the conclusion. Try to make a conclusion by considering the points everyone has made. Follow the above group discussion tips on how to act in a GD and how to do better than everyone.

Group discussion activity is conducted by the companies as a selection round since it gives a better idea about the candidate. Points in a GD round are given on the basis of skills such as leadership, communication, and teamwork. The recruiters can assess a candidate based on various parameters and check if he or she is a good fit for the concerned job position. We can say a group discussion activity and a person's behavior in it gives a brief idea to the recruiter about how the person will behave in a team if he/she is hired.

Having a positive attitude, good posture, and empathy about your teammates in a GD can give you an edge in this selection round.

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