All of these examples have two things in common. The first is that none of the comments are about the substance of the discussion per se. Each contains an observation about some aspect of the process that is stuck or off track. And each contains a suggestion for how to move forward or an invitation to problem solving. The second is that they all sound slightly awkward—not how regular people talk. And paradoxically, that’s one of the reasons these kinds of interventions can be so powerful.
