Consider the following 2 examples:

1. Not a quiet person in the office. But when it comes to meeting, he prefers to remain quiet even though he does have some opinions/ideas/suggestions. He is worried others will look down or laugh at him. So he prefers to keep those points to himself. And sometimes, after the meeting, he’ll start to complain other people’s ideas and that the management should listen to him instead.
2. Never a quiet person and loves to speak out during meetings, sometimes, a bit too much. His purpose is to enforce his ideas and authority, and make sure he is important in the meeting and everyone is listening to him. This kind of people tend to have poor listening skill. He can ask or talk about something which has just been discussed few minutes ago, or he often interrupts people while they’re talking.

Of course, the second one is the type which we always notice and always hate. Well, he makes us notice him anyway. But in my opinion, both are equally guilty and equally bad. Both should change and a balance should be reached.

The quiet one should learn to be more outspoken. These individuals always complain that other people are more successful not because they are smart, but because they can talk. Bad news for these guys, that’s the reality. It’s not like you need to talk like a consultant or salesman, but good communication skill is an essential tool in the corporate world. Would you rather work with someone who can explain himself well, or someone who knows a lot of stuff but always tell you the wrong thing? The answer is pretty obvious. Also, it doesn’t help to keep everything to yourself. People won’t know what you want/feel until you tell them.

On the other hand, the 2nd person should also change. Try to listen more and put his ego down. No point forcing his ego onto other people as this will only frustrate and irritate people more. Also, there’s no need to show off how outspoken he is. Giving other people the opportunity to speak or finish their sentence is necessary as a kind of respect. If you don’t respect others, no matter how good a speaker you are, they will not respect you (some will hate you). So listen more and observe the situation before you speak (so far, those that I know who belong to this group…..nobody really likes them, not even the bosses).

So what do you think? Have you met such people before? Do you find them annoying and at times frustrating? Or perhaps you are one of them? (Well, the first one is still okay since nobody really hates them… but the second one is quite a pain) If yes, which type do you think you are and how do you think you can change for the better? Remember that a balance is required here and too much of any side can bring pretty bad consequences.