PPP #108: Enjoy the silence

Pip’s Practical Prompts Newsletter

Sent by Charles Burdett

The power of less

Many companies succeed not by adding delight to our lives, but by removing some kind of pain.

With its live tracking function, Uber removed the uncertainty of waiting for a taxi.

Instead of adding a positive to your customers’ lives, think of removing a negative.

Writers know to get into the scene late - and get out early.

This means cutting out the obvious, like a character opening a door and sitting down to talk.

And it works for presentations, too.

Instead of setting up the problem, jump right into today to hook your audience.

Once you have their attention, you can give a bit of backstory.

Whenever you’re facilitating a meeting, don’t try to fill the silence too early. Lots of great insights will be lost.

People aren’t computers - they need time to process information.

Next time you feel the uncomfortable silence, give yourself 10 more seconds before you speak.