This week in the world’s #1 newsletter on leadership communication:

Keep Them Hooked in 10 Moves
On the Show: How to Nail the First Minute of Any Conversation
Book Recommendation: I Went Back to 1956 for Communication Advice…

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Keep Them Hooked in 10 Moves

Getting attention is easy.

When you start talking or presenting, people naturally listen to you, especially if you avoid the “hello, it's nice to be here, thank you for having me…” trap and instead use a killer opening line (these are my favorites).

But keeping attention is hard for biological reasons that are hardcoded into our system. Research shows that audiences drift off after 90 to 120 seconds, even with strong speakers.

That means two things:

First, make sure your key message is crystal clear from the start (unless you are deliberately building suspense).

Second, re-engage your audience every two minutes. I often go through a talk or presentation with my CEO coaching clients and add a variety of tools and tactics to keep them hooked.

These ten work for almost any occasion:

1/ Ask an unanswered question

Ask a question like “What explains this development?” and the brain can’t help but search for the answer.

2/ Say something new or surprising

Our brains are triggered hard by novelty and surprises as these signal either threat or opportunity.

3/ Use humor to reset the room

Humor is great, but you don't want to tell a scripted joke. Instead, include levity and conversational humor.

4/ Tell a personal story

Stories create emotional connection. They pull people in when information pushes them away. If you don't want to tell a personal story, you can also tell a customer story or any story really.

5/ Show a prop or striking visual

Make your message visible and tangible. One strong image beats a slide full of text.

6/ Interact with one person

Focus on one person to engage all. Ask e.g.: “I know you had the same problem last month too, right?”

7/ Deliberately pause longer than feels comfortable

Say nothing for 3–5 seconds. Hold eye contact. It's uncomfortable but silence pulls people back in.

8/ Ask the audience

“Who here has had this problem too?”

“Quick show of hands, who …?”

9/ Change your voice and energy

Avoid holding a monotonous monologue. Shift pace, tone, or volume. Variety keeps people with you.

10/ Make the audience imagine something specific

Imagining something together creates involvement.

“Picture this: you’re halfway through your talk… and people check their phones.”

The good news is, these work even if the topic itself is dull. And your audience will thank you for it.

ON THE SHOW

How to Nail the First Minute of Any Conversation

I do a weekly show to help you become a top 1% communicator. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple, or Youtube.

You’ve probably had this happen: You start explaining something… and you can feel it’s not landing.

So you keep talking… and somehow make it worse. It sure has happened to me.

The fact is that our lives and careers are built one conversation at a time, and a conversation is usually won or lost in the first minute.

To resolve this once and for all, I invited the leading expert on how to start a conversation: Chris Fenning. He is the author of The First Minute, Effective Meetings and Effective Emails.

In this super actionable episode, Chris shows you how to start clearly, avoid those long “backwards” conversations, and reset when things go off track. We also discuss, you guessed it, meetings and emails.

When you think about it, most of our workday is conversations, meetings, and emails – so getting these right creates outsized impact.

Watch and listen to the full episode here:

BOOK RECOMMENDATION

I Went Back to 1956 for Communication Advice

Everyone knows “How to Win Friends and Influence People”, published in 1936. Few people today know Dale Carnegie's other classic “How to Develop Self-Confidence and Influence People by Public Speaking” (1956).

Carnegie's public speaking courses, established in 1912, are both legendary and are still his company’s most popular offers today.

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who took the course in 1952, often said: “It was the most important investment I ever made.” The $100 he spent on the course delivered more value than any financial investment he’s ever made: “It increased my earning power by 50%.”

Is it still worth reading today? I’d say only if you're interested in going back to the sources. It's not that the advice is bad. On the contrary, a lot of it is timeless and holds up.

It's just that it feels a bit quaint today. Here’s a little taste: “Have a message and then think of yourself as the courier boy instructed to deliver it.” (I guess that made more sense in a world without emails:)

Have an inspired weekend,

Oliver