The Power of Pauses

Public speaking is just that – speaking, right?

And we focus on what we will say and how we will say it; on how we will stand and how we will move and how we will use eye contact, but always we focus on the saying – the speaking.

Sometimes we forget the value of silence.

Maybe it’s because we have had drummed into us the dreadful crime of using an um or an ah, or a y’know to fill the silence while we think. So we focus on fluency, on continuing to talk, and on the next point and the next … to the conclusion.

And sometimes, in the midst of all that focus, we forget the power of the pause.

…

the power of the pause!

It can refocus audience attention. (Remember how it felt in school when suddenly you noticed that the room was silent and the teacher was looking at you?!)

At the least it interrupts the flow of that continuous speech we were using so that that audience attention is refocused on what we have to say next.

A pause will then add power to your next point … because that attention is so newly focussed.

A pause will build your confidence, simply because of the power, but also because you had the gumption to stop the flow of speech.

If it is a pause to let you think, then the audience should recognise that and value that you are giving your best to your presentation.

A pause is a powerful way to change tack. You can change from a supercharged, rapid fire delivery style to one that is quieter, slower, more reflective. Again the power is in the change of attention, and in the fact that you have given your audience variety. But the pause has also allowed you to add power to the change of direction.

For all of these reasons … and there are many more … you take your public speaking to a higher level when you use the power of the pause.