There are many factors that help you to communicate more effectively with others,
and your influence and success is driven by how effective your communications are.

Here are two of the factors I have found to be very important:

1. Being Concise

When you are concise, you are less likely to bore and frustrate others.

The ability to be concise is one of the most important factors for effective communication and here are a few reasons why:

1. You get to the point quickly before others lose their patience.
2. The less you say the more others remember.
3. It’s easier expand what’s concise than to go the opposite way

In my leadership experience, a key area I always wanted to grow in the leaders around me is the ability to be concise. There were good people in my teams that I could never allow to speak to my boss, because they just couldn’t be concise enough to stop my boss losing his/her patience.

How concise are you in your communications?

2. Being Curious

When you are curious, you will naturally ask more interesting questions.

Ask more interesting questions, and you engage others faster. Just think about it! What is everyone’s favorite topic? That’s right, themselves, and you engage others deeply when you ask more questions about what they know, think and feel.

Another great reason: When you are talking, you are only getting clearer on what you already know. You have to ask others questions and listen to learn something new.

How curious are you?

To be more effective in your communications, focus on being more concise and being more curious.