As an emcee, it’s almost instinct to fill “empty air”. It’s my job to always keep things moving, keep things exciting, keep the conversation flowing. I can think of many instances in which silence is not my friend: when an interview stalls, when an audience doesn’t clap, when I run out of things to say. In many circumstances, silence scares me, especially on-air.
On one hand, this fear is validated. People don’t pay me to hold a mass staring contest. But as I grow more and more confident as a performer and public speaker, I am learning that silence has a place and power.
Take your day-to-day conversations for example. I wouldn’t exactly call my brother a chatterbox. In fact, I often think of him as the “strong, silent-type” (at least compared to me). But the older I get and the more conversations we have, I realize, he actually has more to say if I just keep quiet a little longer. I’ve put this to practice more and more over the years and I can only imagine the wonderful insights from others I would have missed if I had continued to jump in and drive the conversation.
To apply this professionally, I’ve found that the more confident I become on-mic, the more I am able to use silence as a powerful tool. I use it to build anticipation before a big announcement, to emphasize an important point, or to simply let the moment sink in.
Now, I know that the ball will only drop if I allow it. If I know deep down I’m not going to let that happen, that no matter what the show will go on, what’s a few moments of leaving the ball suspended to see what happens? It may just be the key ingredient to allowing unforgettable moments to take place.
