There is a lot of overtalk in business. It’s hard not to. I know I struggle with it.
Everyone wants to look smart, put their spin on it, piggyback, build, re-state what has already been said in their words, be the contrarian, the provocateur.
The fear is we will miss the opportunity to say it and look ever so clever. Or worse yet, someone else will say it and get credit.
This causes us to jump in mid-sentence while someone else speaks, which has the exact opposite effect. Even if we say something genius, people usually only notice our rude, interruptive behavior and miss all the brilliance.
As difficult as it is, most times waiting while everyone talks, formulating what you want to say, then dropping a pithy, insightful thought after has way more impact than blathering aimlessly and having any real point diluted by all the other words.
Think more, speak less. I have that mantra on a sticky on my WFH desk. And on rare occasion, I even achieve it.
