We live in an age of distraction and information overload. McCormack’s Brief Lab conducted research that found that 75 percent of professionals tune out of a presentation within the first minute, and they stop reading an email after the first 30 seconds. Other research indicates that the average attention span is only eight seconds long, which is down from 12 seconds in 2000.
Whether you’re making a presentation in front of a group, trying to woo a new client, or talking with your employees or coworkers, you should get to the point as quickly as possible. You don’t want to lose out on an opportunity to convey the right impression just because you drowned your message in too many words or theatrics.
Know what your point is
Before you can make your point, you have to know what point you want to get across. This may seem like a no-brainer, but you might find that it’s more challenging than you think. Before you prepare any presentation or embark on an important conversation, ask yourself what it is you want to accomplish. Do you want to motivate someone to action? Do you simply want to relay a piece of information?
Try to boil your point down to one or two sentences. Once you have this decided, you can determine how much more information you need to include in order to support your point.
Consider your audience
Another key element in preparing to make your point is thinking about your audience. Different people are most affected by different types of information and methods of communication. A potential new client might be most interested in your company values, whereas another client might be more focused on your reputation for meeting tough deadlines.
If your point is “you should do business with my company,” build your presentation around why someone should do business with your company. Always think about “because” when you are trying to move someone to make a choice.
You also need to think about your relationship with your audience. The way you communicate with employees will be different from the way you communicate with clients. You may not need to convey the reasoning behind a particular direction you give if you’re managing the everyday affairs in your office. The best choice might be to give simple directions and only offer an explanation if someone asks for one.
Take culture into account as well. People from some countries are completely fine if you are a little on the blunt side; they consider this to be normal and perhaps even helpful. However, people from other backgrounds may be offended if you’re too straightforward. If it is at all possible, know your audience’s preferred style of communication so you can make the best preparation for getting to your point.
Consider the format and setting
What format and setting are you going to be using to get to your point?
A formal presentation in front of a group will require that you have organized your information well and have practiced what you’re going to say. Visual aids, such as a slideshow or charts, may be the edge you need to communicate effectively.
Perhaps you need to have a serious sit-down with an employee about their performance. Make sure the setting is appropriate to the circumstances, and be careful not to beat around the bush. Have concrete evidence for your concerns, and don’t give the employee any false ideas about what you’re trying to say.
Getting to your point is a whole different story when you’re communicating via email. You won’t have the advantage of tone of voice and facial expressions to clue you in as to whether your audience understands you. Always use proper grammar and spelling, put the most important information at the top, and use bold text or different colors for items that are of the utmost importance.
Make your point
Thinking ahead of time about how you’re going to get your message across is essential, but there are other points that must come into play when you’re actively communicating with others.
Don’t distract
The last thing you want to do is unwittingly sabotage yourself by distracting your audience from your message.
Word whiskers are hugely distracting, and they’re one of the toughest enemies of clear speech. Eliminating them starts with being aware of them. Practice giving a presentation, and record yourself. When you play back what you’ve recorded, count the number of uhs, ums, and other word whiskers that crop up in your speech. Another idea is to have someone you trust signal you when you use a word whisker. For example, they might make a subtle hand gesture that lets you know you’re littering your speech with unnecessary and distracting syllables.
Another thing that may distract from your message is the wrong vocabulary. You might think you sound impressive when you spew out a bunch of technical jargon, but if your audience doesn’t understand those terms, you’ll make yourself look pretentious.
Don’t let visuals get in the way, either. Charts, slides, and drawings can help you get your point across, but be sure you have a specific purpose for using them. Don’t use color schemes that are hard on the eyes or fonts that are difficult for the average person to make out.
Also be aware of ambient noise. Taking a potential client to your favorite restaurant for lunch could be a good move—but not if you know the restaurant is typically very noisy around lunchtime. If you don’t have an easily accessible, distraction-free environment where you can conduct business, consider renting an office space from WeWork.
Other circumstances you need to take into account include your audience’s state of mind. If a big event in the office has captured everyone’s attention, you might need to delay a conversation or presentation until all the hubbub has died down.
Don’t divert
You want other people to avoid being distracted, but you have to take measures to make sure you yourself stay on track. Let’s say you have more than one thing you want to say to a particular employee. One thing might deal with an ongoing project, and the other could be related to the upcoming annual company picnic. If you try to talk about both things at once, the employee may end up confused about what exactly you were trying to say. Stay on one topic at a time.
Also, be aware of the danger of idle chitchat. If you are an extrovert who thrives on conversation, you may sometimes find that you start talking about things completely unrelated to your main point. You might be eager to share tales of your latest vacation, but unless your vacation is related to business, that is a topic you should reserve for a setting that is purely social.
Don’t assume you’ve been understood
Even if you’ve put strenuous effort into getting your point across, you should never assume that your audience got your point.
Look for body language that indicates someone is listening. This could include eye contact and occasional nodding. If you see a puzzled expression, you might have to backtrack a bit to further explain yourself.
In some circumstances, you can ask questions to make sure you’ve been understood. The question might be as simple as, “What do you think about our plan?” or “Are you comfortable with your role in our next project?” When the occasion calls for it, you can straight-up ask if the person understood you, and you can ask them to repeat your message in their own words.
When you’re communicating via email, you can ask that recipients send back a brief note acknowledging that they got your message.
Don’t give up
Learning to be an effective, concise communicator takes time. If you discover that you’re often misunderstood or that you waste time on conveying information that isn’t important, look for the root cause behind the problem, and then make a conscious effort to improve. Feedback from trusted coworkers and even your friends and family can be a huge help.
In a business environment where everyone is busy and distractions are the norm, knowing how to get to the point is essential for entrepreneurs. Always have your main point in mind, consider your audience, and continually hone your communication skills. In the end, you’ll save time and avoid costly misunderstandings.
