I Will Be Brief (imported from my Hamlet blog)
Sunday, May 25, 2008
From an interesting young economist named Ian Ayres (I've read his book called Supercrunchers). Perpend:
Polonius's is a supernegation of his own claim, a negation deluxe: Since brevity is the soul of wit and tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes, I will be brief.
I have a bachelor's in economics. I'm thrilled with a new energy in the field for applying the powerful tools of economic analysis to genuine, everyday problems--something I didn't really encounter at Northwestern in the early Eighties--problems like speakers droning on and on. Though not exactly a real economic study, this blog post offers a refreshing look at a talented economist's mind in motion.
Why people start with "I'll be brief":
The problem:
A simple study:
A proposed solution:
Thus it remains and the remainder thus.
People who say that they’re going to be brief often aren’t.
Indeed, the very time taken to say that you are going to be brief works to negate the claim.
Polonius's is a supernegation of his own claim, a negation deluxe: Since brevity is the soul of wit and tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes, I will be brief.
I have a bachelor's in economics. I'm thrilled with a new energy in the field for applying the powerful tools of economic analysis to genuine, everyday problems--something I didn't really encounter at Northwestern in the early Eighties--problems like speakers droning on and on. Though not exactly a real economic study, this blog post offers a refreshing look at a talented economist's mind in motion.
Why people start with "I'll be brief":
Of course, one of the strongest reasons for starting with this statement of intent is as a soft form of commitment. I’m giving the audience permission to cast aspersions toward me if I speak for too long.
The problem:
One of the problems is that people underestimate how long they speak.
A simple study:
It would be useful at Quaker meetings (or other places where people share the floor) to have speakers immediately, upon finishing an oration, estimate how long they spoke. I bet initially many people would report that they speak fewer minutes than they actually do.
Or (like asking people if they think they are better or worse than the average driver), you could ask them if they think they generally speak longer or shorter than the average meeting speaker. I’m guessing most people believe they are more concise than their average neighbor.
A proposed solution:
Better yet, groups might develop a norm to have speakers publicly estimate how many minutes they intend to speak before they begin: Instead of saying, “I’m going to be brief,” it would be a stronger commitment to say to the moderator, “Please interrupt me if I speak more than X minutes.”
The problem of speakers droning on at conferences and meetings isn’t one of the biggest problems in the world — but it is an example where cognitive error leads to a persistent dysfunction.
Thus it remains and the remainder thus.
