photo by moonlightbulb

If you’re interested in effective communication, I’m sure by now you’ve read Chip and Dan Heath’s Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. One of the most compelling concepts explored in this fascinating book is the Curse of Knowledge. Here’s what the Heaths have to say about it:

People tend to think that having a great idea is enough, and they think the communication part will come naturally. We are in deep denial about the difficulty of getting a thought out of our own heads and into the heads of others. It’s just not true that, “If you think it, it will stick.”

And that brings us to the villain of our book: The Curse of Knowledge. Lots of research in economics and psychology shows that when we know something, it becomes hard for us to imagine not knowing it. As a result, we become lousy communicators. Think of a lawyer who can’t give you a straight, comprehensible answer to a legal question. His vast knowledge and experience renders him unable to fathom how little you know. So when he talks to you, he talks in abstractions that you can’t follow. And we’re all like the lawyer in our own domain of expertise.

Here’s the great cruelty of the Curse of Knowledge: The better we get at generating great ideas—new insights and novel solutions—in our field of expertise, the more unnatural it becomes for us to communicate those ideas clearly. That’s why knowledge is a curse. But notice we said “unnatural,” not “impossible.” Experts just need to devote a little time to applying the basic principles of stickiness.

JFK dodged the Curse [with “put a man on the moon in a decade”]. If he’d been a modern-day politician or CEO, he’d probably have said, “Our mission is to become the international leader in the space industry, using our capacity for technological innovation to build a bridge towards humanity’s future.” That might have set a moon walk back fifteen years.

Every industry, every field and every endeavor has its secret language: the jargon, the technical terms, the acronyms and shorthand that enable us to communicate quickly among our peers and colleagues. But what about the poor schmuck who has no clue what the hell you’re talking about? That poor schmuck may be a customer, prospective donor or other would-be stakeholder you’ve made feel inadequate, confused and slightly stupid.

If you want to communicate with the outside world, the first step is not assuming anyone knows what you’re talking about. If I don’t live in your world, you’d better make it simple for me. Lose the jargon. Break down the technical language into something anyone can grasp. If you’re not ruthless in identifying and eradicating everything that stands in the way of my understanding you, then your “communication” may be a wasted effort.

photo by hbp_pix

Trust is in short supply these days. Corporate bad behavior is a huge part of the problem, but so is lousy communication.

The financial industry deliberately confuses and misleads us with “disclosures” that run 20 pages long and require a law degree to understand. Big Pharma TV commercials claim that their products will cure what ails us while reeling off a long list of “possible side effects” that make me think I’ll just stick with the disease, thanks very much. And failing automakers like General Motors think they can still blow smoke up our tailpipes. No wonder there’s so little trust in corporate America.

Listen carefully. I’m about to reveal one of communication’s worst-kept secrets.

Here it is: Communication isn’t about sharing your news and information. It’s about building trust. Here’s how you do it.

Be continuous and relentless. Communication is a process, not a one-time announcement. You need to communicate frequently. You need to say, say it again and then restate it because people either miss it the first five times or they’re just not paying attention. Use different media and methods because we’re all different. You may like to read it, I may like to hear it, someone else may like to watch it.

Be visible. Maybe you do a great job of keeping donors up to speed on what’s going on. What about your employees? What about the people you serve? Make sure you’re communicating equally well with all stakeholder groups. You need everyone’s commitment and understanding to be successful.

Share what you know when you know it. There’s no better way to damage your credibility than to share the news after everyone already knows what’s going on. Don’t leave the communication of important news and information to informal channels. You may be tempted to craft your message perfectly and tie it up in a bow, but you frequently don’t have the time to do that. Better to be a little rough around the edges but timely and reliable.

Explain the why as well as the what. All stakeholders need the big picture. Understanding how what’s being done contributes to the success of your mission is essential. Don’t assume “everyone knows” why you’ve taken a step. They frequently don’t. Worse, they may make their own assumptions that are only distantly related to the truth.

Listen. Ever notice how a phone has both a thing you talk into AND a thing you listen through? You’re supposed to use both. Knowing what’s on the minds of stakeholders helps you craft more effective communication. Yes, you have a message you want to get out there. But if no one’s interested in that message, you have a problem. Listening helps you figure out what the message should be.

Be honest and expect honesty in return. I’ve always found that coming from a place of integrity encourages greater trust and a richer dialogue. It doesn’t necessarily mean complete transparency; there is information that can’t be shared with everyone. But letting people know that, and why, is better than lying or misleading stakeholders. Candor and clarity on your part encourage a greater openness on the part of others. Well, most others … being open with stupid or evil people isn’t going to accomplish anything. Go ahead and try it anyway.

Be respectful. No matter how good your communication is, some will not agree with your decisions. Disagreement isn’t the same as distrust. Differences of opinion are healthy and can lead to better outcomes. The important thing is to respect the opinions of others when they’re sincere. Insincerity can kiss my you-know-what.

Enable others to do their jobs through your communication. It never ceases to amaze me how many people don’t get this: Effective communication provides people with what they need to do their jobs. It’s not just about getting the news out or making sure everyone’s in the loop. Being well-informed leads to better decision making.

Be real. “Authenticity” is a word being tossed around a lot these days, especially with respect to social media. It applies to all forms of communication. People don’t engage in dialogue with organizations or corporations; they talk to other people. Maybe that’s one reason corporate blogs are deemed untrustworthy. Be a human being in your communication. If someone feels like they’re dealing with an organization and not a person when they deal with you, then you’ve got a problem.

Take responsibility for your message. Sometimes this means owning a mistake. Better to make it, own it and move on than to waste time figuring out how to cover it up, deflect criticism or distract attention.

One final thought. Your actions are worth a thousand emails. If there’s a disconnect between what you’re saying and what you’re doing, then all the communication in the world won’t save you. Make the effort to follow this advice and you’ll be better off. You can trust me on this.

photo by karen horton

Here are some excellent tips from Before and After magazine for the non-designer forced to play graphic designer due to a lack of budget or personnel. It’s a short post, but in a nutshell:

• Type, image and space are the three basic elements of design.
• Before you design anything, know what you’re trying to communicate.
• All design elements have a purpose and should related to one another.
• Consistency strengthens brand.
• Many designers don’t know their typography.
• Overuse of decorative type, gimmicky embellishments and an overall “sameness” to the page are sure signs of an amateur.

There’s more, so be sure to check it out. Before & After is a great resource for practical design tips, tutorials and templates that can help you learn to fake being a designer when your options are limited. You can subscribe either to the print or PDF edition, or even purchase individual articles.

I recently tweaked a newsletter template I got from B&A to produce my nonprofit’s annual report. Other than the photography and reprographic costs, my budget going this route was minimal since I wrote and produced it. In today’s tight times, this kind of resource is essential.

photo by styleserver

Love it or hate it, Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style continues to be the most widely read English style manual. The 50th anniversary edition doesn’t hit Amazon until April 19 and already it’s #31 on the site’s bestseller list.

Personally I don’t have much use for it as a grammar guide. But there is some good advice for the novice writer that bears repeating.

1. Use the active voice. Which is stronger: “There were a great number of dead leaves lying on the ground” or “Dead leaves covered the ground”? Active is more forceful and direct, always better in my book.
2. Use definite, specific, concrete language. Vague and general make for boring writing. Vivid details paint pictures in the minds of readers.
3. Omit needless words. It sounds pretty obvious, but examples of unnecessary padding are everywhere. You’d think all writers were being paid by the word.
4. Revise and rewrite. This can be particularly tough for those who don’t consider themselves to be writers. Hard enough to crank out that first draft, but then have to go back and rework it? Jeez! But any writer will tell you that good writing comes out of ruthless, diligent editing.
5. Avoid fancy words. Don’t use a ten-dollar word when a nickel will do. That goes for jargon, technical language, anything that stands in the way of clarity.
6. Be clear. OK, I roll my eyes at this one, but how many would-be writers overlook the obvious? As the authors write, “… since writing is communication, clarity can only be a virtue.” Be virtuous. Be clear.

Beyond that, you might want to save your money. Pick up a copy of Anne Lamott‘s Bird by Bird instead. Now there’s writing that teaches and inspires.

photo by Collin Anderson

Why is it that so many people consider simple writing too simplistic? I edit other people’s writing and my own with an eye toward directness and ease of comprehension. But I’ve found that many people have an annoying tendency to try to “re-complicate” what I’ve simplified.

Maybe they think a simple, straightforward approach reflects poorly on them. Maybe they’re afraid that readers won’t think them capable of complex thought. But if you’re looking to ensure the greatest comprehension among members of your target audience, then you should be doing everything you can to be clear. Direct. Easy to understand.

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I only recently started using the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Tests as a gut-check on my own writing. It’s an invaluable tool for helping you polish your writing and ferreting out whatever is getting in the way of clarity and conciseness.

There are two tests. One measures reading ease and the other lets you know the grade level at which you’re writing. A reading ease score of 80 percent means that 80 percent of readers should understand what you’re writing. A grade level score of 8 means that anyone with an eighth-grade education will get it.

Most newspapers are geared toward this reading level for a simple reason: They want to maximize their potential readership. They understand that overly complicated, dense writing drives readers away. You should too.

By the way, I ran this entry through Flesch-Kincaid and got a reading ease score of 65 and a grade level score of 7.6. Not bad, but it could be better.

photo by jurvetsen

Katya Andresen had a great short post on the importance of transparency a few weeks ago. While she’s speaking primarily to nonprofit marketing folk, the lesson is equally applicable to all organizations. Without transparency it’s difficult to build trust, especially in today’s environment.

But if transparency is the new black, I’d argue that clarity is the new grey. Even those who think they’re being transparent frequently fog things up with jargon, unnecessarily convoluted language and dazzling displays of numbers that only serve to confuse.

People are hungry for clarity. A recent Siegel + Gale survey found that 84 percent of Americans say they’re more likely to trust companies that use jargon-free, plain English in communications. Three-quarters believe that complexity and lack of understanding played a huge role in our current financial situation. And 79 percent think it’s an important enough issue that President Obama should “mandate that clarity, transparency and plain English to be a requirement of every new law, regulation and policy.”

Your organization probably doesn’t have a global director of simplification like Siegel + Gale does, so it may be that the job falls on your shoulders.

I’m a big fan of transparency. I think it’s essential to developing solid, trustworthy relationships with your stakeholders (customers, clients, employees, donors). But I’m an even bigger fan of clarity. You really can’t have one without the other.