3 Life-Saving Ways To Stop Being Boring
Umm, hold on, I’ve just gotta think about the time when…when was it again? Sorry, am I boring you?
A big part of making sure others listen to you is to stop being boring.
You may not even realize that your style of speaking is perpetually monotonous, but over time, you’ll notice people looking away while you speak, avoiding conversations, or even politely excusing themselves from engaging.
How you say something is possibly as important as what you’re saying.
Here are 3 life-saving methods you can adopt right now to stop being boring.
Enough with the ‘umm’
I know how tempting it is to fill the imminent silence with unnecessary words or sounds, such as ‘so’, ‘umm’, or (this one’s my favorite) ‘like’.
If you want to sound like just about anyone else, continue using these. Sure, no one’s going to point you out. But if you desire sophistication and mystery, learn to embrace the silence. Pause before speaking, and take a small moment to think about what you want to say before you say it.
Think about depictions of dominating and authoritative lead characters in cinema, and one thing you’ll notice is that they never, and I repeat, NEVER use silly words to fill silences.
If anything, silences are your superpower.
Slow down
We’re in a rush for everything, even while we’re communicating. That needs to change.
When conveying a long message, slow down and speak clearly, leaving out detail that isn’t essential to the conversation. Extended messages can be delivered in concise words, but only if you take your time to think before you speak.
For practice, listen to this wonderful TED talk by Dr. Ivan Joseph, and notice how he pauses at the right moments, as well as talking at a clear, pleasantly-sounding speed.
Make it interesting
One of the reasons we find movies and novels so thrilling is because they depict reality in a modified, often exaggerated way.
A little bit of exaggeration and romanticism goes a long way. When we convey experiences in a way that sounds thrilling, people are naturally attracted to what we have to say. Many times, conveying a message through a story can be equally effective. Of course, these stories aren’t pre-planned — you’re crafting them on the spot. But the way you express your ideas through any means is what will make you a better speaker.
Check out this example of perfect story-telling by Bryan Cranston — you almost want him to keep speaking.
While we may not receive the same kind of media training as A-star celebrities, we can certainly learn to improve our way of speaking.
The changes we need to make are really just minor tweaks. But these tweaks make all the difference you’d ever need!
Thanks for reading
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