"As it is said that the writers of great prose often start as writers of bad poetry, so it may be said that this writer of great short speeches started by writing bad long ones." - William Miller, about Abraham Lincoln
If there's one thing I'd like to do, it's to cut down on empty syllables. Who knows where it stems from, but I tend to say things for the sake of saying them sometimes. It may be an attempt at humor that isn't even particularly clever or funny in my own mind before it pours out. It may be a temptation to say the last word of the conversation.
Today I was running a meeting after a fairly bumpy night of sleep. So short in fact, that I hustled into work to run this meeting without a shower. The topic of the meeting was customer service, and there were plenty of chances to laugh. Fortunately, there were a few times when a dumb thought passed through my head - and I consciously let it run on its merry way. I think mainly it's because I was aware of my own heightened susceptibility to bad judgment in my tired state, so I was less likely to blurt something out without checking it at the door.
Silence is much more valuable than I've given it credit. Words are like coins - losing their value as more are made. A quiet smile goes a long way.
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