5 productive words to use during business meetings - Research

Why you should use power words

Applying the words in the business meeting opening grabs attention and keeps attendees focused on the issue and person at hand.

Since they control attention, they are also effective in redirecting or refocusing it when changing the topic in discussion.

Furthermore, they close a meeting on a positive note which can influence positive responses and proposals being approved.

According to MIT professor Cynthia Rudin and MIT student Been Kim, research was collected from data from several business meetings which highlighted words that appeared to make a huge impact.

"More than 11 million business meetings take place daily around the world, so learning which words affect the productivity and outcome of those meetings can help companies change the course of their success," they said.

The study of meetings is not a new field of research, however it is challenging to capture social signals and the dynamics of interpersonal relations.

The researchers however, employed hypothesis tests and predictive modeling which concluded with a list of the five words with the highest persuasiveness.

What to say during a business meeting

There's a reason why these five words have so much sway in meetings. For example, the word "yeah" exhibits agreement and acceptance with points of view.

Avoid compliments

The research indicates that compliments given during meetings rarely have the desired effect. In fact, compliments given to counter negative comments are viewed as insincere.

Use decision-signaling words

Researchers also studied words that show imminent decision to gain insight into the decision-making process during meetings. They discovered that decisions are expected whenever employees offer requests and suggestions from information.

“This would be useful when listening to a previously recorded meeting and you want to fast-forward to the key decision. Or, it might help managers be more efficient if they could be automatically alerted to join a meeting when a decision is about to be made,” Rudin said.

When to use power words

Sprinkle them through out the conversation. Here's an outline that shows the effectiveness of each word has in different parts of a business meeting.

Start of the meeting

"Yeah" indicates agreement and can show your commitment to push the topic forward in accordance with the meeting.

However, if it is used in changing a topic, "yeah'" could come off as dismissal of a previous topic or show a need to move on, and the end of the meeting it can show your desire for the meeting to be concluded.

Using the word "start" to commence the meeting, you grab the attendees attention and lets them know that time for chatting and waiting is over so they start actively listening.

The word "give" focuses attention on the speaker because it triggers the subconscious excitement of reward or receiving something valuable.

"Meeting" demonstrates the kind of tone the conversation will adopt, in most cases, a professional tone. It staves off casual tones and focuses on achieving results on a specific topic.

“Discuss” at the start of the meeting invites your audience to contribute to the discussion, People pay attention when they are given the opportunity to be involved. Identifying communication in the meeting with "discuss" creates a sense of togetherness where everyone feels welcome and their views valued.

Changing the subject

Transitioning from topic to topic can be hard because getting others to change gears can be difficult. But these five words ease that process.

"The word “yeah” can help you segue. Agreeing with what is being said about the previous topic captures attention. You can then use that agreement to move on to the next topic. For example, “Yeah, that’s a great point. It reminds me of the issue we’re having with … “ the research reads.

“Start” can be effective too because it signals listeners that something new is starting.

"Meeting" can be used to bring attention back to the topic at hand in situations where a meeting goes off-topic. The study showed that it is a gentle redirection and was well received each time a speaker used it.

Closing the meeting

Towards the end of a meeting, these five words can help you get a warm welcome and approval for your work.

Using the five essential words phrases your conclusion in a way as though your proposal is already approved, which makes it easier to get that response.

"There is an element of neurolinguistic programming at work when you use the positive words “yeah,” “start” and “give” at this stage of a business meeting," the study reads.

Employing the five words in a business meeting does not ensure success but improves chances of achieving success.