In our leadership communication training we offer our participants a variety of tools & tips that are usefull in every day life. One of the things ALL participants remember is the S.U.-principle. Before you start wrecking your mind that these letters stand for I will share the secret. It’s: Shut Up. A lot of people feel the need to break the silence in case one occurs in a conversation. A natural thing, and real convenient for avoiding an awkward situation. But…, if you are having a profound discussion and you’ve just posed an impactful or challenging question please be quiet for a bit. Try not to fill in what the person across from you is thinking or why he or she doesn’t reply, just let them be for a moment. The ‘bigger’ the meaning of the question the more time the brain of your conversation partner will need to just let it sink in. So, the package this tip a little friendlier than Shut Up, just remember ‘Speech is silver, silence is gold’.
