The Power of the Pause

I like many others have been subject to speech makers. Whether in-person,watching television or other medium, I would not even try to guess how many I have seen/heard over the years. Of course, the great majority of them have been forgotten. In large part, this is due to my own limited memory but also because so many have been forgettable. This is true of the countless interactions I have had with others as well. Still, I do recall the various tones and styles used in the forums in which speakers strive to connect with their audiences. They shout. They whisper. They use props. They pace back and forth or stand still.

If done well, all of these devices can be and are effective attention-getters. At times, they can even be more noteworthy than the actual words that are being spoken. But one device that is used, though not all that often, is worth mention as it can be quite effective and, at the risk of overstating my point, a speaker's best tool. I am talking about "the pause." When a person speaks, those on the receiving end quickly fall into the cadence of how the speaker is speaking. At times, they can settle in with that cadence or rhythm so completely that the sound becomes a kind of white noise. As a result, the listener tends to stop paying attention as well as they might.

Pausing represents a break or disruption. Not unlike an alarm clock, it can snap the listener back to attention and, at least for a few moments, get them to refocus on what is being said. Pausing can also draw attention to specific points, give the speaker a chance to mentally regroup, or enable them to make effective eye contact with their audience. The trick with pausing, however, is in the timing. Speakers should time their pauses at key moments in their speeches such as when they are about to make an important point. It is an effective public speaking device and equallly effective communication tool.