Are you a little TOO quick to the point?

Page 1 of 2 [ 22 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next

markaudette
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 15 Oct 2006
Gender: Male
Posts: 629
Location: Middle Tennessee, USA

29 May 2008, 12:34 pm

I am a little TOO succinct. I just get right down to the point of things.

For instance: Today I went to the local bicycle shop and asked the owner if he had any "rim tape." Heavy cloth tape to keep the tube from rubbing on the inside of the spoke holes, which can cause the tube to bust. Instead of a well thought out question like "May I have a roll of Velox rim tape?", I walked up to him and just blurted out "Rim tape?" He gave me a quizzical look and and asked me to repeat myself. Then I had to ask him again in a full sentence "May I have a roll of Velox rim tape?"

The shop owner stays a busy man so I just figured in my mind that the more straight to the point I am, the more he would appreciate it. But I was wrong. I'm always wrong.

Are any of you far too quick to the point when talking to people? And how do they react when you are a little too succinct in making your point?



nettiespaghetti
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 22 May 2008
Age: 45
Gender: Female
Posts: 343
Location: Michigan

29 May 2008, 12:42 pm

I definitely am. When I'm trying to tell a story or describe something people will look at me a bit perplexed and then start asking me details. I'd probably save myself alot of time if I'd try to think it out and tell them the entire story first.



kclark
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 10 May 2007
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Posts: 314
Location: NE Illinois

29 May 2008, 1:08 pm

I always skip the obvious easy detail and jump right into the heart of the matter. I forget that other people didn't have the thought work getting me to the point I am at now. I sometimes find it real hard to go back to where I started and try to catch them up.



RedRevolver
Butterfly
Butterfly

User avatar

Joined: 8 Aug 2007
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 13

29 May 2008, 1:19 pm

Heh. Yeah. I do that, and usually end up making a meal of explaining myself because I feel stupid.



Lene
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 27 Nov 2007
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 3,452
Location: East China Sea

29 May 2008, 1:57 pm

Yeah- I usually feel that if I'm not ridiculously succinct, I'm wasting the other person's time. I often end up telling stories backwards as a result!



ferch8ch8
Tufted Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse

User avatar

Joined: 17 May 2008
Age: 50
Gender: Male
Posts: 27
Location: Mexico

29 May 2008, 2:34 pm

Al the time. And the same when someone is trying to tell me about some incident, I always want to know the important issues and get rid of the rest.


_________________
"Now I can see"


TallyMan
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 30 Mar 2008
Gender: Male
Posts: 40,061

29 May 2008, 2:38 pm

I used to be too direct and to the point, but have learned when it is expected to engage in a few pleasantries first. Here in France there are very formal pleasantries which generally need to be exchanged even with shop keepers. You get used to it after a while and sometimes it can be a little amusing or entertaining - provided you are not at the back of a long queue and there is a dialogue holding things up while people are talking about the weather, their family etc etc etc - this is common in France.



jamescampbell
Snowy Owl
Snowy Owl

User avatar

Joined: 23 Apr 2008
Age: 31
Gender: Male
Posts: 153

29 May 2008, 4:37 pm

I Straight to point too.



NeantHumain
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 24 Jun 2004
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Posts: 4,837
Location: St. Louis, Missouri

29 May 2008, 6:20 pm

Sometimes I give too many details that I think are necessary to understanding "the point," but many people feel they are irrelevant. This has led me to conclude that, although I may be clear and specific, I am not always succinct. In other words, no, I have the opposite problem as you.



Josie
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 25 Apr 2008
Age: 42
Gender: Female
Posts: 607

30 May 2008, 12:22 am

I am straight to the point. Some people don't understand and it is so EASY!! !



makuranososhi
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 12 May 2008
Age: 48
Gender: Male
Posts: 5,805
Location: Banned by Alex

30 May 2008, 12:25 am

Can very much relate; it's one of the reasons I appreciate the Japanese language so thoroughly... much less cumbersome. At the same time, I am prone to wax verbose frequently. Maddeningly inconsistent.


M.


_________________
My thanks to all the wonderful members here; I will miss the opportunity to continue to learn and work with you.

For those who seek an alternative, it is coming.

So long, and thanks for all the fish!


Greentea
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 14 Jun 2007
Age: 62
Gender: Female
Posts: 4,745
Location: Middle East

30 May 2008, 12:45 am

Yep, people ask me to repeat and explain a lot, because they're like taken aback by the lack of unnecessary, boring chatter around what I want to say.


_________________
So-called white lies are like fake jewelry. Adorn yourself with them if you must, but expect to look cheap to a connoisseur.


SotiCoto
Velociraptor
Velociraptor

User avatar

Joined: 13 May 2008
Age: 40
Gender: Male
Posts: 474
Location: London

30 May 2008, 4:48 am

One extreme or the other.
Either straight to the point, no nonsense..... or nit-picking through every little, tiny detail while missing the bigger picture.


I am... that is.
I'm kinda doing it here.

If I'm feeling direct though and someone doesn't get what I'm saying, my first response is usually not to elaborate but to start patronising them by saying the same thing more slowly and in a condescending tone of voice. It is my typical way of dealing with slow mundies.

.



Deus_Imperator
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 13 Jun 2007
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Posts: 360
Location: Australia

30 May 2008, 4:58 am

Yep.


_________________
Vale Omnes


Microban
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 27 Jan 2008
Age: 31
Gender: Male
Posts: 290

30 May 2008, 5:49 am

Deus_Imperator wrote:
Yep.

I see what you did there. :D



hale_bopp
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 2 Nov 2004
Gender: Female
Posts: 17,054
Location: None

30 May 2008, 7:28 am

Pretty much

I asked this guy I had only known for two minutes when the the last time was that he got laid.

(and no I wasn't coming onto him, he was acting like he hadn't been laid in ages)