Brevity

On November 19, 1863, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln gave his famous Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

It took Lincoln all of 2 minutes to read his famous address.

Just prior to Lincoln's speech, Edward Everett spoke at the Gettysburg event. Everett was a U.S. Secretary of State, U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Governor of Massachusetts, Vice Presidential candidate, and President of Harvard University.

Everett spoke for 2 hours.

Edward Everett spoke for 2 hours at the Gettysburg dedication, and Abraham Lincoln spoke for 2 minutes.

Lincoln's 2-minute Gettysburg Address is now one of the most famous speeches in history.

Nobody remembers a word that Everett said.

The lesson to be learned here: you don't have to speak for a long time to be effective. There is merit to brevity.

Mark Twain once humorously noted, "Few sinners are saved after the first 20 minutes of a sermon."

Be brief and be effective. Just like Abraham Lincoln.

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