In my daily syndicated corporate audio program, I have only 60 seconds to capture the listener’s attention. That is very little time to influence anyone about anything.
Yet, it is 100 times longer than researchers say most of us take to begin making a first impression and 10 times longer than we glance at a webpage before moving on.
How many times have you listened to a speaker or colleague ramble on about something and you have no clue what they’re talking about? Your mind wanders, thinking about lunch or where the person next to you gets their hair cut.
Maybe YOU fill time with far too much verbal information, so much so that your listener gets lost and needs a compass to get back.
Action – When speaking, keep asking yourself this question – “and your point is?”
It’s the same question your listener is asking. The answer you come up with will guide you to being concise, relevant and heard!