Communication Tips

Create Headlines for Your Core Themes

A good headline greatly increases your chances of seizing and holding your listeners' attention.

Try to compress your message into a short, arresting headline-three to seven words are best. This headline becomes the first and last words of your explanation or answer. So make your headline strong, vivid, memorable.

Why Headlines?

1. Short, punchy headlines focus your energy on a riveting central message
2. A headline gives your listeners a simple, memorable idea that unifies your message
3. A headline sums up your ideas for your listeners, and minimizes

How to Create Headlines

1. Follow this recipe

• Prefer the familiar word to the far-fetched. E.g., "productive" instead of "fecund"
• Prefer the specific word to the obtuse. E.g., "exchange" instead of "reciprocation"
• Prefer the single word to circumlocution. E.g., "now" instead of "at this point in time"
• Prefer the short word to the long. E.g., "use" instead of "utilization"

2. Cut adjectives to adverbs

To sharpen your language, let the nouns and verbs do the work for you. E.g., replace "looked carefully and deliberately" with "studied".

3. Use active, not passive verbs

Active verbs add power and zest to your message. E.g., replace the passive statement "Efforts will be made by the committee to..." with the active "The committee will try to..."

Top of Page

© 2010 Think on Your Feet International, Inc.