A fine example of conciseness

Here’s an example of conciseness, from the man (photo) who probably holds the all-time record for the number of movies he appeared in.

When people see his face in an old movie or TV rerun, they usually say things like, “Look who it is,” or “Oh, him,” or “There’s what’s-his-name again.”

His name is Charles Lane. He died in 2007 at the age of 102, after appearing in about 800 movies and TV programs.

This is a three-minute video in which Mr. Lane receives an acting award at the age of 100. His acceptance speech – a single sentence consisting of six words – clearly and powerfully captures the spirit of his career. A better example of conciseness would be hard to find.

The Takeaway: When you think and write clearly, you can make a point with very few words. You automatically improve your conciseness.