In the workplace, I’m often an advocate for “less is more.”
I learned this a lifetime ago while I was managing client accounts for the youth marketing agency I worked for.
We’d be in the middle of a client pitch or project update and someone (sometimes me, sometimes not me) would have the compulsion to keep talking even after they had clearly answered the client’s question or made their point.
Later in my career as an HR Business Partner, I witnessed many (too many) managers who kept talking during a reduction in staff, employee relations discussion, or other high-stakes meetings (even though my eyes were imploring them to PLEASE STOP MOVING YOUR MOUTH!)
Because, as it turns out, more does not equal better.
The power of your communication is inverse to the length of your explanation.
Often, when we keep talking we only serve to confuse (or bore) our audience and the point we were trying to make gets lost amid an onslaught of words.
This directly impacts your personal and executive presence as well. (Forgive me if I’m stating the obvious…)
So, why do we keep talking then?
There are probably innumerable reasons, but here are trends I’ve observed and heard from clients:
- We lack confidence. When someone feels ill-prepared, out of their league, or is faced with an imposing audience, nerves kick in and the mouth keeps going. Especially if silence ensues (this is why silence is a great interview – and coaching! – tool.)
- We value details. Most of us tend to default to our own desired means of communication. If someone loves details, they’re likely to assume others do as well. Especially if the job requires it – like accounting and compliance.
- We think they need to have answers to EVERY question lobbed their way. Do we need to be prepared for meetings? Yes. Do we need to be a walking encyclopedia (do those still exist?) of every detail on every topic? No.
- We’re external processors or verbose by nature. Many people figure out what they want to say as they’re saying it. This is fine in some scenarios and definitely not doing you any favors in others.
Spoiler alert – I’m about to state the obvious again. Different audiences require different levels of detail. Your role may also determine the amount of information people expect from you.
Listen, if you’re the CFO, it’s likely in your best interest to know the top line, bottom line and everything else in between on the P&L. You don’t need to know how much the last invoice for the office cleaning was. Unless there is an issue with the office cleaning in which case maybe you need to know. Maybe.
If you’re a solo-practitioner and responsible for everything in your “department”, filter out the most salient points to talk at a more strategic level.
So, how do you handle the above scenarios? Here are suggested actions and questions to help you manage your communication.
If you’re short on confidence…
- Action: take a deep breath, say what you need to say, then ask a question.
- Question: “What questions do you have?” If people need more detail, they will ask for it.
If you like details…
- Action: Think about which details are going to be most relevant to your audience . Watch for body language in the meeting. If people are picking up their phones or looking bored, it may be time to move on.
- Question: At the start of the meeting, or anytime during a meeting, ask “What information will be most helpful for you today?”
If you are nervous about not having all the answers…
- Action: Get a grip. 🙂Trust yourself to know intuitively the information you MUST have at your fingertips, and that which is “nice to have.” No human has answers to all questions all the time. If you don’t trust yourself, ask a colleague or your manager for input.
- Question: “What else can I share that would be helpful?” And of course, promise to follow up if you don’t have the information readily available in your head.
If you are verbose…
- Action: Do some advance preparation to think about the context of the meeting and who will be in attendance. Prioritize what’s most important. If you weren’t planning on speaking but get asked a question, take a slow breath. Give yourself a moment to get grounded.
- Question: “How much detail would you like me to share?” Take your queue from the answers.
And finally, if you need a fun way to help you remember to economize your words, I offer you two acronyms:
WAIT – Why Am I Talking?
WAIST – Why Am I STILL Talking?
I could go on, but less is more. 🙂
