Is anyone old enough to remember those commercials for EF Hutton, where the tag line was “When EF Hutton talks, people listen”? Each one has a guy who says the tag line to his buddy, and immediately everyone in earshot freezes, and leans in to hear what he has to say? They’re a little cheesy now, but take a look, because that can be you, the person everyone leans in to listen to.

How does it work? Believe it or not, it’s the silence that everyone hears, not the words. People who pause between their statements give their audience time to process the words. Kind of like the period at the end of a sentence, it’s a verbal period. It gives the audience the opportunity to pause, think, or laugh, or agree, or smile, or whatever you want them to do.  They will begin to pay more attention to your words, eager to hear the next thing you have to say.

Practice your verbal punctuation – pause! –  and see what it does for you. People will begin to lean in, just like EF Hutton.