Conciseness is an essential skill in public speaking. A concise speech is brief without being empty. Conciseness means stating your points in straightforward and simple language. A concise speech doesn’t have any repetitive words, clutter, and verbosity. It makes speech easier to understand, and it keeps your listeners engaged. In writing a speech, conciseness impacts your delivery. You can learn how to speak concisely with practice.

How to speak concisely

• Cut out redundant words. Avoid repeating two words that mean the same thing in the same sentence.
• Avoid using complicated language.
• Use shorter words
• Remove unnecessary filler words.
• Be as straightforward as possible, and avoid overexplaining.
• Don’t digress too far from your point.
• Try to work within the timeframe.

How to write a concise speech

• Practice your speech on someone who can give you feedback
• Review and shorten your speech as many times as possible
• Look out for redundant pairs and remove them.
• Remove qualifiers and modifiers that weaken your speech.
• Cut down on prepositional phrases.