I have been watching the Netflix documentary Simone Biles: Rising. I am utterly awe-struck by this extraordinary and inspirational person. I could wax lyrical about her mind-boggling gymnastic feats or about the profound courage and determination she has shown in dealing with abuse, trauma and extreme pressure. However, I want to say a few words about Simone Biles the communicator. I find her a very engaging speaker. Here’s why.

Overview

I love the way Simone Biles talks. She projects well but keeps a natural tone. Her voice is clear and confident, but her open body language and facial expressions communicate humility rather than arrogance. She is always sincere: positive and passionate when talking about her successes and honest and reflective when talking about her failures. She radiates warmth, love and good humour.

My Analysis

Let’s get into some specifics. Here is a brief technical analysis of three features of Simone Biles’s communication style:

1. No umm and aahs
   Simone Biles rarely uses filler sounds, those ‘umms’ and ‘aaahs’ that leak out of us when we’re thinking about what we want to say next. At MSB Executive we call them ‘noisy pauses’, because pausing is exactly what we ought to be doing between one thought and the next. However, a pause should be silent! When Biles has nothing to say, she says nothing. There’s a lesson for us all.
2. Facial expressiveness
   When Biles speaks, her eyes sparkle and her face lights up. Try watching her on mute – you’ll sense her passion. Even at press conferences or in interviews – when she’s answering questions she has fielded a hundred times before – she gives the strong impression that she cares about what she’s saying and about getting her message across. Passion is a fundamental component of good communication. There is power and conviction in it. Even if we were muted, our passion should be clear.
3. She stops at the end
   It’s a common habit – especially for British English speakers – to tail off at the end. We reach the end of a thought, but our words dribble on uncertainly for a few seconds. Even whole presentations end not with a bang but a whimper. We fade away with ‘OK, yeah, so, errr, I suppose that’s all I wanted to say on that.’ Not so with Simone Biles, who lands strongly on her final words, often finishing with a nod and a smile – a visual cue that it’s now the other person’s turn. It’s my favourite feature of her communication style.

Efficient and precise, full of sparkle, a strong and definite landing… Simone Biles speaks as she vaults! If I have one misgiving, it’s that she often speaks pretty quickly. When she’s in full flow, I can barely keep up with her. I suppose that’s exactly what her fellow gymnasts might say.