Analyzing their thoughts before throwing them seems to be the key of success for businessmen like Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc. and Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, as well as actors like Tom Cruise. A long and colorful list of names pops up when we think about “the uncomfortable silence rule”. What is it exactly? Read more below!
What do they have in common? They wait, process and think before speaking. Sounds easy but nowadays most people tend to act fast and furious.
Making a pause of 10 to 15 seconds before talking may look like a short period of time but also can become an eternity specially if you are waiting for a response. Not mentioning how uncomfortable the situation turns.
A habit that allows to balance thoughts and emotions improving your communication skills extremely linked to emotional intelligence.
Nowadays it's applied specially in Hollywood, where actors learn how to do a pause while speaking to control their breath in order to make a joke line or give the film more drama and expectations.
In the following video, you can see actor Tom Cruise a couple of years ago practicing his lines and breaks for Mission Impossible:
Cook and Bezos are not the only ones trying to get more out of every word they say. People like Barack Obama, Steve Jobs or Elon Musk used to practice it and benefits are in sight. What do you think about this technique? If time is money, how much do silent seconds cost?