Robert K. Greenleaf Quotes

For effective communication, use brevity. Jesus said, 'Follow me.' Now that's brief! He could be brief because of all that he was that he didn't have to say.

True eloquence consists in saying all that is necessary, and nothing but what is necessary.

Less is almost always better than more. Short words, short sentences, short speeches.

I don't care how much a man talks, if he only says it in a few words.

It is excellent discipline for an author to feel that he must say all he has to say in the fewest possible words, or his reader is sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words, or his reader will certainly misunderstand them. Generally, also, a downright fact may be told in a plain way; and we want downright facts at present more than anything else.

The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending, then having the two as close together as possible.

Minimalism has a connotation of being reductive, and not in the best way. 'Brevetist' is a better term. I'm trying to be as concise as possible and still getting across to the reader. When information is delivered in that way, it is very satisfying to me.

Why need I volumes, if one word suffice?

Simple and to the point is always the best way to get your point across.

Say what you have to say in the fewest possible words.

Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in a few.

If you cannot say what you have to say in 20 minutes, you should go away and write a book about it.

Whatever is worth saying, can be stated in fifty words or less.

Say what you have to say and the first time you come to a sentence with a grammatical ending - sit down.

I think precision in writing goes hand in hand with not trying to say everything. You try and say two-thirds, so the reader will involve himself or herself.

The simpler you say it, the more eloquent it is.

Aiming at brevity, I become obscure.

Simplicity is all. Simple logic, simple arguments, simple visual images. If you can't reduce your argument to a few crisp words and phrases, there's something wrong with your argument. There's nothing long-winded about 'Liberté, égalité, fraternité'.

The finest words in the world are only vain sounds if you can't understand them. The best sentence? The shortest.

It is sheer laziness not compressing thought into a reasonable space.

It is very hard to be simple enough to be good.

Why do we embroider everything we say with special emphasis when all we really need to do is simply say what needs to he said? Of course the fact is that there is very little that needs to be said.

It's better to say nothing than spend 1,000 words or an hour speech saying nothing. Get to the point.

To use many words to communicate few thoughts is everywhere the unmistakable sign of mediocrity. To gather much thought into few words stamps the man of genius.