Letting silence do work for you

When someone says something interesting, don't immediately respond. Let it breathe. Two or three seconds of unhurried quiet does more for a conversation than five clever words could, because silence signals that you received what was said, that it actually registered, rather than just hitting the queue for your response. Most people are deeply uncomfortable with silence in conversation, which is why the person who can inhabit it comfortably stands out immediately. Silence also creates weight. The pause before you answer a question gives your answer more gravity than if it arrived immediately. The moment of quiet after an interesting statement makes the statement feel more significant. The withholding of an immediate reaction — holding the moment slightly longer than is comfortable — produces a quality of presence that's rare and difficult to replicate by any other means. Practice being slightly slower to fill space. The effect is larger than it looks.