Brevity Is the Soul of Great Public Speaking

A note to young leaders.

If brevity be the soul of wit, it’s surely also the patron saint of public speaking.

If your audience is starting to get restless or uncomfortable, shorten your address. There’s no shame in that.

It’s not about you, it’s about them.

America’s ninth president, William Henry Harrison, provides a cautionary tale.

On March 4, 1841, Harrison gave what ended up being the longest-ever inaugural address by a U.S. president – an 8,445 “word soup” that took him nearly two hours to deliver in cold, blustery weather.

A mere 32-days later, he died from pneumonia – developed from a cold that he contracted while delivering his marathon address.

And when it comes to public speaking – if you can’t say what you want to say in 20 minutes, go away and write a book instead.