Keep It Simple, Make It Count

Hey there! Zoe here.

Hope you had an interesting day today and that you were able to pay just a little closer attention to the way you ‘present’ in your conversations and relations with other people. That’s wonderful and I can see you are getting really better and better, if you’ve missed the first Article, I’d like you to go read it, you’ll find it very insightful.

Today I want us to talk about Clarity in the way we talk and communicate with other people.

Clarity means being easy to understand. It’s when your message is so clear that the other person doesn’t have to guess, struggle, or overthink what you mean. Clarity is when someone hears you once and gets it. If they ask you for the meaning of what you just said, then clarity might be lacking in your presentation.

I have observed that one main reason for lack of clarity is when we try to sound impressive… I can’t help smiling when I remember the times I got caught up in that, lots of times actually.

In one instance I’m explaining something, and instead of just saying it simply, I start adding extra words, ‘bigger grammar’ and all the while I’m feeling cool with myself, and am thinking,” Yes, that sound’s intelligent, sophisticated and highfallutin, (see what I did there?) Well, let’s just say the people I was talking to didn’t get what I was saying, they kept asking me questions to try and get me to clarify what I said, To them it was hard making sense, they wanted to be sure what they heard is what I said. I found myself having to explain myself a couple of times before they got it.

So I totally get it, we want to sound smart, we want them to know we are educated and informed, we want them to know we’ve got a good grip on the English Language, But sadly, all that means nothing if the people you are talking to don’t understand you. And if your audience can’t understand clearly what you are saying, then you did not communicate anything even though you used complicated sounding vocabulary and high-sounding jargon.

So here’s the issue, A lot of people do not have any challenge with communicating. Its not because they don’t know what to say. They struggle because they don’t say it clearly.

They think that sounding complex makes them sound intelligent. But in reality? It takes away from their ability to communicate idea’s and concepts clearly.

Think about the people you truly enjoy listening to. I dare say that they don’t stress you, they don’t confuse you, and you don’t have to replay what they said in your head three times to make sense of what they said, You just, get it.

That’s not by accident. Its because clear communicators do something very intentional. They remove unnecessary weight from their message.

Let me give you an example: Instead of saying, “We need to strategically align our communication approach for better outcomes.”

You could simply say, “We need to communicate better so we get better results.”

Did you notice that it’s the same message? Yes, but while one feels like work or code you have to unravel, the other feels clear, simple and easy to understand. And don’t get me wrong, the first phrase is not wrong and in certain circles that may be appropriate, but you want to be clear the first time and not have to explain yourself all over.

You want your audience to get you. You want to connect with them instead of trying to impress them. You want them to understand them easily.

And you will be amazed at how well people respond to that. They will remember what you said, they trust you more, and its easier for them to follow instructions,

So next time you’re about to explain something,  just pause for a moment and the ask yourself, “Am I trying to sound smart, or be understood?” Because the two are not always the same but the latter makes a whole world of a difference.

This Week’s Practice Tip:

Take one message you’ve sent recently; email, text, anything. Look at it again and ask: “Can this be shorter and clearer?” Then rewrite it. You’ll be surprised at the outcome. Secondly, you want to discuss some idea’s with a friend and colleague. If you wrote a script, review it. Can it be written in simpler terms?

Also, let me know in the comments if you have ever in conversation of any kind, had to explain yourself again and again because the other person did not clearly understand you. Could you have said it better?

I’ll see you soon

Love

Zoe McDarlington