After reading Richard Alan Naggar posting “The Challenge (listen more talk less) Test," I was reminded of this quote by William Shakespeare in his play “Hamlet:”
“Brevity is the soul of wit.”
How often in our goal to make a friend, earn a seller’s listing, secure a buyer’s sales lead, do we talk way too much about what we do, what we know, who we know, you get the idea?
In sales, this is called a “sales pitch,” and has morphed into “values proposition statement.” Sometimes the other person turns a deaf hear or he or she may just hear “blah, blah, blah.”
Thomas Carlyle is quoted as saying:
“Speech is great, but silence is greater.”
Brevity includes silence by allowing the other person time to respond. Now with technology, our responses are often delayed and we must have patience when communicating via mobile devices. I must admit I sometimes fall into this technology ravine.
Possibly by understanding emotional intelligence and applying that understanding to our own verbal conversations as well as our written words, we may be surprised by the results.
When we learn to actively listen for the pauses and allow time for those pauses to turn into a verbal response, we are demonstrating emotional intelligence as well as respect.
Another way to demonstrate brevity, is to actively listen and then to respond by restating what we just heard.
EXAMPLE: You may say “Thank you for sharing what is important to you. This is what I heard.” (Restate with brevity what you heard.) Then ask “Please correct me if I misheard what you shared?” Again, silence is required until the other person responds.
One of the results I often receive from taking this emotionally intelligent response is the other person makes two short statements. “Thank you” and “No one before listened to what I had to say or what I wanted.”
Yes when we learned to include brevity and silence in our communications we will realize success.
P.S. If you are thinking of selling your home, your vacant land or considering buying a home or vacant land, then connect with a professional real estate agent who actually listens to your needs and wants.
Leanne M Smith, The Grit and Gratitude Agent Who Goes the Extra Mile Because Life Begins Where the Pavement Ends.
Feature Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com
Any reproduction of Leanne M Smith’s blog for use by any AI or GAI, distribution or reproduction including but not limited to electronic newsletters e.g. PDF’s Internet sites or physical products e.g. newspapers, CDs without prior written permission and consent by me, Leanne M. Smith (Leanne Hoagland-Smith) is strictly prohibited.
Comments(5)