By Ozzie Logozzo

I’m not a doctor but you, my dear reader, suffer from attention deficient disorder (ADD). Yes you. No, I don’t know you but the diagnosis is as predictable and precise as any law of physics. Indeed, we all have the problem to varying degrees.

We live in a crazy-busy, short-cut society overwhelmed with information overload. We seek instant gratification. This coupled with others vying for our attention results in an exponential information dump that has morphed us into self-absorbed, confused creatures wasting time with a multitude of factoids and gadgets. We are disconnected from each other and from usable knowledge. We interrupt and ramble when others just want us to listen. We over-use tech tools and waste time. We become defensive fault-finders who jump to conclusions, responding too quickly to what we see rather than what we truly hear. We act as super-saturated robotic, distracted and rushed facsimiles of ourselves. We’d rather text than phone. We’d rather email than visit. We talk more but do less.

Do you like “quickies”? Come now, don’t try to hijack my message. Focus on what I have to say.

There is a quick, simple rule – the Rule of Three – that can help you get attention, help you re-connect and help you relay your desired objective in a persuasive manner. The rule is based on Aristotle’s three-part drama construction: beginning, middle and end.

In the beginning, you must connect. Hook your audience in an attention-grabbing manner. If folks are connected they are ready to participate, contribute and make decisions. You must engage others to overcome their cultural ADD.

In the middle, you must convey your message in a succinct and precise fashion. You have to cut to the essence of the information you want to disseminate in order to transmit knowledge of value to your target. In a world infused with Internet knowledge, you have to become an I.M. agent (information management).

At the end, you must convince. You must transfer ideas so others can understand their purpose, be able to apply them in differing circumstances and add value to their skill set.

This Rule of Three – connect, convey, convince – has universal applicability. It is not just an education tip and tactic.

Have you noticed that I applied the Rule of Three in crafting the above message? In paragraph one, I “hook” your attention. In paragraph two, I convey the current reality and in paragraph three I attempt to convince you that there is a better way.

The Rule of Three has implications for Realtors. Give thought to some sample questions:

– What must I do to become masterful and high performing?

– How do I engage myself with my clients and customers?

– How do I transform a mountain of information into useable, take-away knowledge for my clients?

– How do we speak less but do more?

Ozzie Logozzo is executive director of the Ontario Real Estate Association Real Estate College. He is a Fellow of the Real Estate Institute of Canada and was the 1993 recipient of OREA’s Education Merit Award and the 1997 recipient of Real Estate Educators Association’s prestigious Educator of the Year Award.