The Power of the Pause
When I started my online content creation journey, it wasn’t just going to be about tech and reviews. I also wanted to explore the art of good communication. Over time, that original focus has been pushed to the sidelines. However, after preaching at church nearly every week for over fifteen years, I think I’ve learned a thing or two about speaking to a room full of people. Although I no longer do that regularly—I now put my communication energy into presenting and expressing myself well in my YouTube videos—I think I’ve still got a little wisdom to share. Lately, I’ve found myself in a few conversations about public speaking, and in those discussions I’ve been encouraging people to think about the power of the pause.
You see, we don’t need to fill every silence when we speak. The pause is never as long as we think it is, and it gives our audience time to process what’s just been said. I was at a church meeting recently where the speaker was engaging, passionate, and his sermon was full of thoughtful content, but he never came up for air! Every potential pause was filled with another word. The result was that I couldn’t linger on any of his well made points or observations. There were moments that could have landed much more deeply if he’d just stopped speaking for a second and let the moment breathe.
Why the Pause Matters
We tend to focus on what we say rather than what we leave unsaid, yet silence has a “voice” of its own. It can underline a point just made, draw attention to a phrase, or give a listener space to simply make sense of what they’ve just heard. Communication isn’t only about speaking clearly, it’s also about allowing time for meaning to form.
Researchers have studied this dynamic for years. A project at Brigham Young University found that listeners rated speakers as more competent and confident when they paused briefly after key statements. Another body of research shows that pauses help with retention; people remember information better when it’s delivered at a measured pace, with natural moments of stillness in between. Our brains need those moments to process and store what’s coming in.
In conversation, pauses invite participation. They act as open doors rather than full stops. Small spaces where listeners can respond, nod, or reflect. In monologue-style speaking, like preaching or presenting, those pauses give the audience psychological permission to stay engaged. It’s not wasted time; it’s, in fact, a kind of communicative connective tissue.
And beyond the science there’s a natural rhythm to communication that silence protects imagine reading a paragraph without punctuation the words might all be there but without spacing it’s at best uncomfortable and at worst unreadable pauses perform the same function in speech they give structure and order to what would otherwise be a relentless stream of sound.
Read that last paragraph again but this time add what I missed out on purpose. In fact, read it out loud and you’ll probably find those punctuation pauses come quite naturally.
The pause is where meaning crystallises. It’s a point when listeners’ minds catch up, connect ideas, and anticipate what’s coming next. In that stillness, your words gain weight. This isn’t because you said more, but precisely because you said less. Every skilled communicator knows this intuitively. In a sermon, the pause after a story can carry as nearly as much conviction as the story itself. In a presentation, a brief silence before unveiling a result can heighten its impact. Even comedians rely on this, the pause before a punchline is what makes the joke work. Timing isn’t about speed; it’s about space.
Overcoming the Fear of Quiet
For most people, silence feels uncomfortable. We assume a pause makes us look uncertain or unprepared. But what might feel like a long gap to the speaker, rarely feels that long to an audience. Psychologists studying conversational timing have shown that speakers tend to perceive pauses as lasting twice as long as they actually do. What feels like an awkward eternity inside your head is often just a heartbeat to everyone else.
It took me a while to learn this lesson. I’d fill every possible gap, afraid that stopping would make me lose momentum or attention. Over time, I realised the opposite was true. When I let a line hang for a moment, heads lifted, people listened harder. The silence didn’t weaken my delivery; it amplified it.
It takes discipline not to rush, especially when you care about what you’re saying. (Some folks might say I still need to slow down when I’m having a conversation about something I’m passionate about!) But not rushing is often where confidence lives: the ability to stand calmly in your own silence. To hold a pause is to signal this confidence—in your message, in your audience, and, indeed, in yourself.
What the Pause Achieves
When you stop speaking, several things happen. Your words sink deeper into the listener’s mind. Their focus tightens. Their memory sharpens. In many cases, they may even form an emotional connection to the point you’ve just made. A pause before a key statement builds anticipation; a pause after it seals the message. Either way, silence adds weight that hastily spoken words can’t carry.
The pause also sharpens your own delivery. It breaks the cycle of filler words, the “ums” and the “ers” and gives your brain time to reset before the next phrase or point. It’s a moment of control—a chance to check your pace, your tone, your direction. It’s why skilled orators and storytellers rarely sound rushed: they’re not afraid of stillness. They use it like punctuation, guiding the audience through the journey of their ideas.
Practice Makes … Pauses
The best way to understand the power of the pause is to practise it deliberately. Record yourself speaking, not to criticise your tone or word choice, but to notice the rhythm. Where does it feel crowded? Where could silence create impact? Try adding one or two pauses at natural transition points and listen back. The difference is immediate.
In public speaking, in teaching, in preaching, speaking on YouTube, or even in everyday conversation, the principle is the same. The pause isn’t a sign of hesitation; it’s a tool of intention. It can steady your nerves, strengthen your delivery, and give others the space to think.
So next time you’re communicating, whether to a camera, a classroom, or a congregation, resist the instinct to fill every second. Leave some white space. Give your message a frame. Because the pause doesn’t take away from what you’re saying. It can be what gives your words deeper meaning.
Please support my work and enable me to keep writing content like this by tapping here: BuyMeACoffee
