How to Make Clear and Concise Points in English

 Imagine being in the mountains and you don’t have a sense of what direction to go in. Do you go left or right? Up or down? Which direction will lead you to the right path?

Therefore it’s so helpful to have a map or if you prefer, a GPS on your phone. Either way, that shows us a clear direction to our destination.

Like our hiking adventure in the mountains, we need a roadmap when we communicate with people.

Today I’m teaching you how to have a communication roadmap when you speak English so that you’ll be more clear and concise.

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Alright so let’s communicate clearly and concisely using this framework.

What’s the Heart of the Message

What is the main point? What’s the overall message you want to share? The main idea is the most important part of the message. It’s the takeaway. So when you’ve eliminated all the fluff, all the extra details, all of the unimportant facts, you’re left with the heart of the message.

If you had 2 seconds to share your point, you’d probably cut to the chase. Meaning, you’d probably just say the important thing you want to share, right?

So that important thing should come first.

Share the heart of the message at the beginning because that’s your main point.

Why They Should Care

Next you want to share the so what? The so what is the reason behind why this person should care about this message. It’s something that affects them in some way. This is how you make the message relevant to the listener. If the message is not relevant to the listener they will not care about the message. You need to find a way to make them care. The reason you’re communicating this point to them is because it is relevant to them and it impacts them somehow. So make that clear.

What Action to Take

After you’ve shared the heart of the message and why it’s relevant to them you need to follow it up with an action plan. Think of the action plan as the next steps. We always need a plan before we execute. So, what is it?

Ok now let’s look at an example.

The first example is in a business setting.

Hi Jim. I want to share with you the feedback from our customer surveys. Since you designed the survey, I think that the feedback from this survey, will help shape the design of future surveys. And I have a few ideas I want to run by you to make the survey even better by adding a section of open-ended questions.

See how concise that is?

The heart of the message is sharing the feedback from the customer surveys.

The reason Jim should care is because he designed the survey and will incorporate the feedback to make future surveys even better.

And finally, the action they’re taking is incorporating the feedback and adding a section of open-ended questions for more elaborate customer answers.

Great.

Now let’s have a look at an example in a casual setting with friends.

Hey Sarah. This weekend there’s a gallery opening that I thought we could go to together if you’re free? There are going to be a lot of artists there as well as art curators that maybe you could chat to and see if they’d showcase any of your work? I got two tickets so if you want to come with, maybe you can bring your art portfolio so they can see examples of your work!

Ok cool.

So what’s the heart of the message?

Inviting Sarah to the gallery opening.

Why should she care and why’s it relevant to her?

It’ll be a great networking opportunity and a chance to connect with other artists, art curators and gallery owners who might be interested in showcasing her art.

What’s the plan of action?

For Sarah to bring her digital portfolio to show some examples of her work to those interested.

Awesome.

See how simple that was? No fluff, no confusion. Just getting to the main point as clearly and concisely as possible.

As you can see this framework can be used in business contexts as well as casual settings with friends.

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To Recap:

• What’s the Heart of the Message?
• Why Should They Care?
• What Action to Take?

Use this framework the next time you’re communicating to friends or colleagues in English. They’ll be so impressed with how clear and concise your points are that you might have to share this lesson with them so they can become better communicators as well!

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Alright Advanced English learners. Hope you enjoyed this lesson. Subscribe to the channel if you haven’t already and be sure to share this lesson with someone you think would benefit from it. I’ll see you in your next lesson where we’ll continue advancing your English. 

Until then, keep up the awesome work.

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About the Author and the Explearning Academy:

Mary Daphne is an expert in communication, executive skills and professional development. She is the founder of the Explearning Academy, a platform dedicated to helping individuals enhance their social fluency, boost their careers, and elevate their social game. Through immersive group coaching programs like the Executive Communication Lab and self-guided journeys, participants gain the social superpowers and career catapults they've been searching for. If you're ready to take your negotiation skills to the next level and connect with like-minded individuals, visit academy.explearning.co and explore the various plans available. Join the Explearning Academy community and unlock your full potential.

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