Happy April.

To support you in being F.I.R.S.T. (Future-Ready. Innovative. Relevant. Strategic. Trusted.), here's 1 tip and 1 quote.

1. The F.I.R.S.T. Tip

The ability to speak concisely is an important leadership skill that needs more attention than it often gets.

Consider this:

  • The average office worker receives approximately 128 emails daily and takes 3.3 hours checking / responding to them.
  • People spend about 2.5 hours a day in meetings.
  • 55% people share that they feel overwhelmed by the amount of information they need to deal with on a daily basis.
  • 86% employees blame the lack of ‘good’ (ie, clear) communication for workplace failures.

Given these realities, it is no wonder why leaders who articulate their thoughts concisely and clearly, are seen to be more credible and knowledgeable, and better able to inspire and influence others.

Here are three ways to be a confident and concise communicator, even in time-critical situations.

1. Number your points

In any given situation, decide how many points you wish to communicate and put that number in your opening statement. This not only helps you to stay on point, it leaves sticky notes in your audience’s minds.

For example: “In this situation, there are 3 things we may like to keep in mind…”

2. Use the PREP framework

PREP helps you to speak confidently when you need to speak off-the-cuff. The process is: State your point, the reason why you believe so, provide evidence, and then end by restating your point.

For example:

  • Point: I think we should take Approach A…
  • Reasons: Because this is the most time and cost effective method.
  • Example/Evidence: Department X had also used this approach effectively.
  • Point Repeat: That’s why I believe Approach A is best.

3. Flag your main point

Flagging your most important point captures attention.

Some examples are:

  • If you only remember one thing today….
  • I can’t underscore enough…
  • It all boils down to…
  • The heart of the matter is…
  • The most important point is….

Tip: Mindfulness is all you need to be a more compelling communicator.

2.The F.I.R.S.T. Quote

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