(This is adapted from a draft chapter of a book I’m writing. Feedback appreciated!)
I’ve yet to meet a person who says, “I want my ideas to be misunderstood.” (Some people want to be misunderstood, because it suits a personal narrative and offers endless excuses – think of immature teenagers and some world leaders — but that’s not our concern today.)
Though we all communicate, few connect.
Communicating in a way that connects is hard. Mark Amidon said, “Language is a means of getting an idea from my brain into yours without surgery.” Language, for all its power, is messy. I know a patent attorney who describes the process of torturing English into a sentence that can mean only one thing. Effective communication is prized because the payoff is worth the work. Mark Twain famously pointed out “the difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.”
When is communication particularly difficult?
When there is limited shared vocabulary or context.
When someone prefers not to hear, often because it challenges their presuppositions.
When information is presented in fuzzy, ambiguous, or disordered fashion.
When you’re communicating with people who can’t focus for more than 48 seconds. (Which is most of us, today.)
In short, this is a daily challenge.
…
There are at least 400,000 actively used words in the English language. There are perhaps 50,000 words no longer in common use. This doesn’t count slang, jargon, invented technical words, chemical compounds, anatomy structures, and product and drug names.
You’re fluent in English when you know about 10-12,000 words; about 90% of everyday writing uses 3500 words.
I adore words. I am facile with a large vocabulary.
I also know this: The simpler my sentences, the plainer my words, the more likely I am to communicate effectively. This is true even for the most technically complex information.
The best-converting sales copy is written at 6th-8th grade level at most. This is true in the US, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Sweden, India, and Thailand, across multiple languages.
Most of the seminal scientific papers and political books in history read at a 10th grade level or lower, though they are communicating challenging ideas. Large sections of Plato’s Republic, for example, read at 7th grade level.
The entire Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) reads at a 7th grade level. Howard Hendricks insisted his seminary students structure their sermons to “put the cookies on the lowest shelf.”
What does this tell us?
Effective communication is simple (not simplistic). The recipient’s brain stays focused on the meaning, not being tripped up by “what does that word mean?” and “I’m lost, where is he going with this?”
Take this to heart if you want to connect.
Use short sentences. Use 3 points instead of 7. Drop adjectives and adverbs. Omit needless words.
This only happens through attention and effort. Writing means rewriting. Even ‘informal’ verbal updates require forethought about content and structure.
Recommended resources:
How to Speak, How to Listen (Adler)
Elements of Style (Strunk and White)
…
You might be thinking, “But when I’m talking with other people in my same industry, I need to use many obscure and fancy words and acronyms. I can’t just use 3500 words of vocabulary to explain something.”
You should use a shared vocabulary when communicating in a shared context. You’re free to use acronyms and jargon – these are intelligent shortcuts unique to every discipline. Working across disciplines is different. A molecular biologist talking with an accountant or musician should limit the buzz words unknown outside her tribe.
Even within a shared context, simple sentences and well-structured thoughts are needed for getting ideas across. Bottom-line up front (BLUF), not a torturous chronology. Keep related ideas together. Don’t force your audience to work harder.
