How to communicate more succinctly at work

[TooTalkative]

I'm in a senior manager role in a public body. I've recently had some 360 feedback at work, which was largely very positive, but lots of (anonymous) colleagues said that I could communicate verbally much more succinctly. Embarrassingly I've had this feedback before and thought I was trying to address it, but clearly not.

I think I need to do some actual training / read up on techniques / watch some TED talks to help me improve, as just telling myself "must be more concise" isn't working. There is loads available when I google, but it would be great to have any recommendations for resources.

Any suggestions?

Start with the conclusion then back it up with detail if you need to.

I organize long emails by having the main points I want to make as headers in bold with a bit of text under them. I sometimes move any extra detail underneath my signature as a kind of appendix and just say in the email 'please see below this email for extra details'.

since I moved to America I have also started changing long words for short ones and trying to say things with fewer words. Communication styles are more direct and concise out here.

Yes in general terms but I need to plan it more (on the spot) and say less of what's in my head....

I think I'm actually great at succinct written communication (and editing other people's wordy writing!), and get nothing but positive feedback about that. It's just when I speak, especially verbal on the spot, rather than where I have had a chance to plan in advance...

You don't need to plan it more, you need to consider your listener and learn some body language.

No one likes an info dump and you can take note of signs of loss of interest.

Sometimes (not every time however) this is necessary because there is always the 'I did not know; I was not informed' brigade. The information was shared three times though🙄!

@fallinlovenothate - generally I am pretty confident. But I agree that I think underlying some of this is still a touch of being anxious that actually I might have it wrong/made a mistake/not thought of something obvious. So I need to prove to the audience that I have in fact thought of everything....

I find it helpful to do a modicum of planning (but I actually perform best when I’m winging it! So my prep is done 5 mins before the meeting usually).

start with your top 3 points, 3’s work well in most meeting situations.

Another useful thing to do if you haven’t already is to approach a couple of the people who gave you the feedback - I’d suggest one more senior to you and one more junior - explain you’re really curious for more background as it’s something you really want to work on. Get them to expand on what they mean, and agree with them that you can follow up in a few months for more feedback.

For emails, I read a useful tip which is to start with the main point, then get to context.

Hi xx

Can I get an update on blah?

I'm presenting at xx on this and it would be helpful to know if xxx. Xx also mentioned you might know about yy.

Thanks

If the email takes more than 5 mins to write then it's not an email, it's a meeting/call.

For meetings, I'd be mindful of the feedback you have because some workplaces are dominated by introverts and some are dominated by extroverts which can really skew the perceptions. Some context actually IS useful (telling people why we need to do something or how it relates to something else) because it cements learning. Prep is king though.

The 360 was anonymous and not everyone made the point about me needing to be more concise, so that might be a bit tricky... Although I do think I have enough feedback about it already to take action, without needing more explanation....

I'm good at emails! I edit them down before sending if they are too wordy.

Good point re the workplace culture potentially being extrovert /introvert, although I think a sufficient number of people gave me this feedback that I am guessing they are a mix of extroverts and introverts and it's me not them!

OP, I find the know, feel, do matrix really helpful.

Two mins of planning before I go into the meeting: what do I want my audience to know? How do I want them to feel? What do I need them to do?

Sketching this out roughly before the meeting is always v helpful for me

Did a bit of training (in house) where they focused on who the audience was. Talking to director....give him headline and wait for questions. Talking to people like me...talk it through start to finish and show all workings.
Was actually really helpful and affected how I structured written Comms too.