Sometimes it's what you don't say

As I've grown older, I've come to realize that the most powerful things you can say to a person are sometimes never spoken. When a conversation takes place and you are able to insert ideas and truth between the lines you get beyond the limitation the words place on your ultimate meaning and give your audience the power of inferring what it is you are saying.

If you continue this argument with the belief that your imagination is one of the most powerful tools you have, then would it not be correct to assume that letting your audience use theirs to capture the full meaning of what you say would make your message that much stronger?

There are a lot of ancillary conclusions that you can draw from this idea, but the one that comes to mind most readily is to never underestimate your audience. When given the opportunity to hear what you say and form their own opinions around your words, you will inevitable have a more powerful and lasting impact on them.

I opened this piece with the classic "as I've grown older" adage and I stick by it. I think this is a skill that comes with maturity (read: age). Allowing yourself to let the conversation unfold; being a patient communicator is the only way to effectively insert unspoken meaning.

Being a strong communicator, then, is as much about what you say as it is about what you don't say...

...and you have to listen.