Play it again

Repetition: it’s key to effective leadership

I get annoyed when politicians repeat their rehearsed “sound bites.” I struggle hearing the same story for the umpteenth time. But it does help me to remember.

A recent Adam Grant blog looked at just released research about the price leaders pay for not communicating enough. It’s a great summary that captures the main points well. He notes that effective communication involved repetition to reinforce messaging.

The main finding of the study is that leaders are penalised more for saying too little than for saying too much. In fact, “leaders were over nine times more likely to be criticised for under communication then for over communicating.” That’s a big differential. And even more importantly, “people who under communicated were judged as unqualified to lead because they lacked empathy.”

The lesson from this research: “When you hesitate to repeat your ideas, you don’t just fail to get your point across—you come across as if you don’t care.”

My youngest daughter can hear a song once and remember the words forever, but for the rest of us mere mortals, we need to hear them repeatedly before we know them by heart.

When you feel as though you’ve repeated your message too much, you’re probably just starting to be heard. Should I say that again?

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Photograph: karlyukav on Freepik.