How I Respect Your Time. Tip #4. Keep It Short

“I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.”

Mark Twain

Love this one! 

I confess that this is something I have really struggled with. I’ve never really come to understand the importance of brevity in communication until a few years ago.

Which means that I inundated many, unfortunately, with long prose, unnecessary story telling and a variety of ways a particular message (I considered important) would be positioned to ensure it really hit home.

In the throes of these activities, I seldom stopped to consider whether these were having the intended effect – I was so adamant, it seemed almost a given.

But your message doesn’t get across just because you shout more often or louder, does it?

And sometimes, even when you don’t feel it’s right, you have to just tailor the message to the listener.

So, here’s a philosophy that works wonders for me.

Tell someone who gives a damn.

Figure out who does.

Leave out who does not.

But all the same, keep it short. If they come back for more, at least you know there’s a bite. And if they don’t, well, back to the drawing board then.

This is part of a series of 20 posts on How I Ensure I Respect Your Time.

About Rowena Morais

Helping you showcase your profile, network & body of work | Host, Building Influence Show | Author | 2x TEDx Speaker | Editor Ghostwriter & LinkedIn Profile Writer | Marketing & Communications

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