Keanu uses silence brilliantly in speeches and public performances. The silence helps the listener become curious about what he’s going to say. It breeds suspense and that helps you put your phone away and listen.

Silence breeds curiosity and curiosity leads to a conversation where someone will listen to you.

The typical pattern of meetings and human conversation is to talk a lot. Try being quiet to break the pattern and help people think with your words.

People can’t resist the urge to talk — they also can’t resist the urge to hear from the people who are extremely quiet.

Pauses in human dialogue allow our minds to think at a deeper level. The challenge is often we um and ah our way through pauses rather than intentionally leaving a few.

A pause is a tool you can use to get people to think.

You’re smart when you do the following:

• Let people talk first
• Listen with intention
• When your face shows you’re engaged in the conversation
• You practice saying less
• You lead with empathy

Silence is not only golden; it makes you think. And we need more time to think during these uncertain times.

Conversely, you can’t think about what someone is saying if you’re lost in thoughts of what you’re going to say next.

When you speak less and sit back and listen, during the rare times when you do talk, you have the space to deliver one-liners like Keanu that blow people’s minds and help them to think deeply.