At the beginning of the discussion, reserve yourself the right to limit the number of contributions and their length.
- Justify this from the point of view of safeguarding equality in the discussion. “The intention is to give everyone equal space to bring up their views. Is it all right with you that, as necessary, I will allocate and limit your turns to speak?”
- If one of the participants dominates the discussion, intervene as soon as possible. Thank that person for bringing his/her views to the discussion. Say that you will next want to hear what the others think. “Thank you for bringing up your views. Now, it would be important to hear what the others think.”
- If the dominating person keeps asking for the floor, you can ask the person to wait and give room to the others for a moment. “I will not give you the floor again quite yet. Let’s listen to what the others think before that. Is it ok if you wait for a moment?”
