There are many reasons someone might be hesitant to speak up in meetings — fear of public speaking, being afraid of rejection¹ or even worrying about the ramifications² of disagreeing with your boss.

一个人如果在会议发言时表现得犹豫不决，通常都有多个原因——害怕公开演讲，害怕被否定，甚至担心因老板的不同意而产生分歧。

There are real challenges that shouldn’t be dismissed offhand³. However, it’s a mistake to view them as obstacles you can’t overcome, because sharing your ideas is a critical component⁴ to advancement⁵.

这些都是真实存在的挑战，都不应被人随意抛之脑后。然而，如果你把它们视为无法克服的障碍，那就是一个错误了，因为分享观点是个人的事业发展一个至关重要的组成部分。

Consider how much emphasis is placed on personal branding and visibility when you’re looking for a job. You update your social profiles, you get yourself out there and network, and maybe you even set up a personal website or begin routinely posting your thoughts on LinkedIn. You go out of your way to demonstrate that you’re someone who’ll bring a unique perspective to the company.

试想象，在求职的过程中，你对个人品牌与曝光度的在意程度有多大。你不断更新自己的社交联系簿，你常在外奔跑与他人建立联系，甚至你可能还创建了个人网页或开始定期在商务人际关系网上更新自己的想法。你花了这么多力气只是为了证明自己就是那个能给公司带来独特观点的人。

But once you’re gainfully employed, you go along to get along, thinking your boss will appreciate your agreeability. But the employees who stand out to managers are the ones who share what they’re thinking so their boss knows what they’re truly capable of.

但当你富有成效地找到了工作，你便习惯与他人搞好关系，幻想着老板总会欣赏你的世故。但能够在主管面前站出来说话的那个人，能够说出自己的真实所想，老板才能了解这个员工的真实能耐。

So, with that in mind, here are two common reasons people don’t speak up at work (and how to overcome them):

所以正因这个想法，下面这两个便是人们为何不敢在职场环境中大胆发言的原因（以及解决这些问题的方法）：

1.You’re worried you won’t be as well liked

1.你很担心自己不再像从前那么讨人喜欢。

As Glenn Llopis points out in an article for Forbes, “In today’s workplace, more people are keeping quiet and are just going with the flow — thinking that this is the best way to advance, get noticed and / or win the political gaming that takes place at work…” In other words, no one wants to gain any of the negative reputations that can come along with talking too much.

正如Glenn Llopis在Forbes网站上的一篇文章指出：“在当今的职场，越来越多人倾向沉默是金，随波逐流——也许认为这是最好的晋升或被他人留意的方法，以及可能在职场的政治游戏中立于不败之地…”换而言之，没有人希望由于过多发言而获得负面的名声。

You’re worried that if you routinely pipe up with suggestions or feedback, your colleagues will think you’re undercutting them, or that you’ll be perceived as someone who simply loves the sound of his or her own voice.

你很担心，如果你习惯提出自己的建议或反馈，你的同事就会认为你在给他们造成威胁，或者给别人留下一个自恋自己声音的印象。

Keep in mind that you don’t have to exist in extremes.

请记住，你不必把自己陷于极端环境之中。

First, it’s good that you care about team dynamics⁶. (The person who doesn’t give a second thought to eclipsing his colleagues isn’t only unlikable, but he’s also less likely to advance because he’s steamrolling others.) However, keep in mind that you don’t have to exist in extremes. It’s not as though your only options are to dominate a meeting or say nothing at all. In fact, the most impressive employees fall somewhere in between the two — speaking neither the most, nor the least — but contributing at least one thoughtful, actionable idea.

首先，你关心团队的动态是一件好事。（没有考虑过取代同事的员工不仅不受老板喜爱，而且更难获得晋升的机会，因为他在给别人造成压力。）然而，请记住，你并不生存于极端的环境之中。你能做的不是要么控制会议全场要么沉默不语。实际上，最令人印象深刻的员工懂得在两者之间找到折衷点——既不滔滔不绝，也不惜字如金，但至少提供一个有参考价值，有行动意义的想法。

Second, remember that silence isn’t the best way to show support: It’s much more valuable to be engaged. Have you ever opened a meeting with a brief presentation, asked if there were any questions and heard…nothing? Even if your idea is a course-correction or suggesting an alternate route, sharing that feedback with your colleague now could save valuable time and resources.

其次，请记住，沉默不是表达支持的最佳方式：参与其中更有意义。你可曾试过以简短的展示作为会议的开场，然后提问大家是否有任何疑问，然后得到的答复是……零？尽管你的想法能矫正方向或提供多个可选方案，但是如果能与同事共享反馈也许能节省不少宝贵的时间和资源。

2.You’re worried your ideas won’t be seen as good enough

2.你很担心提出的观点不够好

Unlike the person who is staying quiet for fear of overdoing⁷ it, you're concerned your input⁸ might not be valuable enough. Maybe you’re the youngest person on the team or perhaps you think that if an idea was that good, someone else would have said it already. Regardless, you dread⁹ speaking up and saying something that isn’t really adding anything to the discussion.

与那些由于惧怕多做了而保持沉默的员工不同，你担心的是自己的观点也许不太可行。可能你是团队里最年轻的同事，或者你认为如果这个观点真的那么好，其他人早就把它提出来了。无论如何，你害怕发言，害怕说一些不会给这次讨论有任何实质性帮助的观点。

If you’re not yet comfortable sharing your ideas, start by asking questions.

如果你还不能轻松地表达自己的想法，那就先从提问开始吧。

Much like people who aren’t natural networkers and benefit from conversation starters, come prepared with questions they can ask. Inc. contributor Jayson Demers compiled a list of seven questions including, “What are the action items?” and “What do you think?” The first question is great when you agree with everything that’s been said and are interested in learning more about what’s next; and the second is helpful when you’re working on saying something, but in the meantime, would be more comfortable building off of someone else’s idea.

正如那些并非天生就是社交达人或从交谈获益的新手，在会议前先多准备一些问题吧。Inc.网站的博客贡献者Jayson Demers编撰了7个问题组，包括“活动项目有哪些？”“你的想法是什么？”当你同意对方提出的所有点子并且希望接下来了解更多详细信息，你就可以提第一个问题了；而第二个问题，当你正在想着该说些什么时可以用上这个问题。与此同时，你从他人的想法中衍生新的想法时，提出这个问题能让你感到更自在。

Another option is to wait a couple of beats and fully think through your contribution before speaking up. Rather than share something that’s half-baked, take a moment to fully articulate your thought in your head. If you realize when you’re ready to chime in that the conversation has moved on, you still have two options: make a note of your idea (and share it over email or after the meeting, if relevant), or you can say, “I’d like to move back to an earlier point...”

另外一个方法就是等一会儿，彻底思考你准备贡献的想法再发言。与其提出一些“半成品”想法，倒不如花点时间好好组织你所表达的观点。如果你发现，当你已经准备好发言了，但会议已经转移到下一议题了，你还有两个方法：记下自己的想法（并在会议后与其他同事分享，如果这是相关的），或者你可以说：“我希望再谈谈刚才的那一个议题。”

Not every idea you have will be a hit, but that’s okay. The only way you’re going to make contributions that make a difference is to speak up in the first place. So, look at speaking in meetings as a skill you’d like to improve and start piping up.

你所表达的想法不一定每一个都受大家欢迎，这也是没关系的。唯一表达自己的贡献的方法首先就是敢于发言。所以，在会议里发言可以作为一项有待提升并开始着手的技能。