Keep it Short

Ashley and I continue to creep ever closer towards adopting our first children (view our adoption page here).  There are endless hoops in this process and last night we jumped through another one.  We attended a mandatory training on how to discipline children at United Methodist Youthville.   The social worker teaching the class gave several tips and strategies for developing a discipline plan for kids who have experienced trauma.  My favorite tip was keep it short.

Her theory was this: adults love to lecture, and kids can only pay attention for 2 minutes.  I love the keep it short mantra….and not for just kids.  Unnecessarily complicating things does not make you sound smarter, and it does not help get your point across.  When I was in seminary I always turned in papers that were shorter than the required minimum pages.  Not because I was lazy, but because if I could say it with fewer words it forced me to refine my point.  And if I did it well, the proffessors would never mark me down for turning in 12 pages on a 15 page minimum.

So next time you are communicating write down your most important point in one sentence.  Then go back and make the sentence shorter.  And then do it again.  If you are able to be concise people will love you and you’ll be way more effective.  I’ve said too much.