Be Bright, Be Brief, Be Gone


Colonel Candid here to provide you with great advice when briefing an executive, senior official, or leader. As both the giver and receiver of many different briefings I’ll share some of my tips and tricks to clearly and succinctly get your point across.


Before even creating your paper or starting your briefing the best advice is to: Know your stuff. Seriously, study your craft and dive in. With this opportunity to brief or write to an executive take it as a cherished break to make your mark. You must be ready. The saying, “Be bright, Be brief, Be gone,” is so true. Seniors don’t need you to tell them every little detail. They got to where they’re at because they’re good at what they do. So, please don’t give every single point that led to the conclusion or, heaven forbid, read the executive bullets off your slides.


Always create a read ahead. Information paper, slides, and graphs are important. Create something at the executive level and recognize length doesn’t equal worthiness. Most importantly, recognize the criticality of time to an executive. When preparing for a briefing, ask peers to listen to your rehearsals. Challenge them to push you with hard and tangential questions because you need to be ready to rock this. You’ve got to rehearse and have depth of knowledge. Put in the time and remain curious to all views on your topic. Find a devil’s advocate to challenge you with a cross examination to your analysis.


Now here are some rapid fire real life tips: 30 minutes = 12 minutes max of content. Leave time for questions. One slide per five minutes. State up front what you are seeking: bottom line up front. Don’t sneak big points until the end. Work to create a story, find your own way to sketch out or to weave something in from the executive’s background into the briefing or paper. For instance, when describing distance from one point to another I’ll use the exec’s hometown to another location or the city where the event is held. This gives context to the topic and provides clarity to the receiver.


Lastly, however you get yourself pumped up and ready, either by listening to hard core metal music, doing yoga, or simply, like me, by taking a few deep breaths, do so. This is your moment to shine. In this challenge exists great opportunity, use it to find your greatness.

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