In our roles as Directors, Senior Leaders and at all levels – the ability to clearly and concisely articulate our own value, strategy and execution of these plans and to take others on the journey, influencing, building understanding and relationships and ensuring that others have connection and clear purpose and direction.

One of the key areas we often see, as Executive Search experts and Recruitment Directors, is that people are held back where they are unable to clearly articulate, either their own brand and value or across the board – unable to deliver crisp, on point information, with confidence and language which they can adapt to suit various levels, audiences and situations.
We see a number of individuals and increasingly so, from our younger generations coming through, who, whether or not due to their increased time online versus face to face communication exposure or other factors, for some really struggle with this. In some instances – exceptionally smart, talented and have great thinking, however appear unable to translate this into verbatim that lands effectively in a corporate/ business setting and who, as a result, may miss out on being hired (when up against those who are very strong in this fact) promoted or advanced as a result.
Why is the ability to Articulate critical?
This affects how you do all of the following:
– Build relationships / create connection
– Influence and impact results/ outcomes achieved
– Ensure understanding and clarity/ set direction and focus
– Build culture and high performing teams
– Present yourself, your personal brand and your value proposition
Tips for Artful Articulation:
• Practice Deliberate Communication:
Be mindful of the words you engage and avoid filler words eg: ‘um’/ ‘ah’/’like’, paying strong attention to speaking clearly and concisely. You have probably noticed journalists who use these fillers and think about how this presents?
• Watch Videos on how not to and read materials that help you extend your vocabulary, challenges your thinking and creates great habits.
• Write regularly:
Writing and emails can help you organize your thoughts and improve your clarity of expression and the more you do this , the more you will refine clarity and how to be concise and provide strong context and meaningful impact.
• Practice active listening:
Being a good listener is a crucial aspect of being articulate. By truly listening to others, you can better understand their perspectives and respond more thoughtfully and effectively.
• Pause and reflect:
Before responding to a question or statement, take a moment to think about what you genuinely believe or think about the topic. This pause can help you formulate a more meaningful and articulate response.
• Expand your vocabulary and others:
Having a wide range of vocabulary allows you to express your thoughts and ideas more precisely. Why not try setting yourself a goals around new words you will engage each week and making this into a game for teams or people around you to get involved.
https://uk.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/apps-for-improving-vocabulary
• Engage in more discussion and mindful practice:
The more you engage in conversations and practice your communication skills, the more comfortable and articulate you will become. Rather than avoid challenging discussions, seek them out and view these as key opportunities to refine your skills.
• Seek feedback:
Ask friends, family, colleagues for constructive feedback on your communication skills. This can help you identify areas for improvement and build on your strengths and gain a safe group to practice with and share with them your goals around enhancing your ability to articulate. (Like any goal, when we vocalise these and ask others for help and support we are more likely to get to our destination). You can also record yourself to play back/ use AI to transcribe your discussions and you can then see how you are tracking and where you can make improvements.
• Join a public speaking group/ Find a Mentor/ Challenger:
This is not for everyone, however organizations like Toastmasters International provide a supportive environment for individuals to practice and improve their public speaking skills. If this is not your thing then finding mentors and support people you can practice with and who will flag and provide constructive feedback will be equally helpful, in the work place.