3 Steps to Explain Something Complex

Whether we need to explain our job to outsiders, a new discovery to a co-worker, or a set of instructions to a friend, we all must explain a complex topic to a novice at some point in time. This is not an easy task. Three of the most common mistakes are highlighted below.

Mistakes

1. Some people take the wrong approach by making the topic even more convoluted on purpose to make themselves sound more intelligent.

2. Others assume that their counter party they are speaking to is more knowledgeable on the topic than they actually are and make crucial false assumptions.

3. Another fallacy is to not clearly and explicitly explain the purpose up front of why you are speaking and why your listener should care.

However, there are a few steps to take to ensure that your point gets across. These pieces of advice are relevant in almost any circumstance when a complex topic must be explained. This is due to the fact that they appeal to human nature and I will show you how this can be accomplished.

How to make a complex topic clear?

1. Use metaphors. OFTEN. Metaphors are the key to helping people understand anything new. You have to know your audience for you to create a metaphor that is effective. Metaphors should be used so often that you should use at least one in nearly every minute of dialogue. Metaphors and analogies simply help people connect to you by relationship building - this is human nature. 

They can be a simple as this example. Lets suppose that you want to convince a friend to invest in a solid and steady dividend stock with a lower (but less risky) return than a new high tech company. You could say 

"Lets assume that you have $1000 to invest. Would you rather have a mailman show up at your door every three months and give you an additional $20 in your wallet? Or would you rather play poker and watch your $1000 go up to $1200, down to $700, up to $1100, down to $800, etc., every time you ask the deal what your stake in the game is currently at."

2. Imagine you are speaking to an adolescent teen. If you imagine this scenario, you will never make false assumptions. Most of the time, this role play is not far from the truth when discussing an esoteric topic. Under the assumption, you will never miss a step and your explanation will be much clear to an outside party. If you mix in a plethora of metaphors in your description and utilize the third bullet below, your message will become transparent. 

For example, its similar for wives who want their husbands to pick up some paint at the store. They shouldn't say, "I want purple paint", but instead imagine a child is going to the store and say "I want a gallon of Crocus Petal Purple (2071-40) made by Regal paint".

3. Always circle back to the benefits and why they should care. If a topic isn't perfectly clear from the beginning why the listener should listen, then it is doubtful that they will spend much energy into understanding the topic to begin with. When explaining a complex topic, your opening statement should be about benefits to the listener. Throughout the conversation, you should connect your main points back to the main benefit that you stated at the beginning of the conversation. Lastly, you should even close with the same benefit statement, so that the listener is acutely aware of the benefit that you intend to bring. Three times is the charm. 

An analogy is such when a coach steps in as the new head coach. In his beginning speech, he states "I am here to win a championship". During the season, when the team is running laps and thinking to themselves 'I hate this coach', the coach reemphasizes that we are here to win championships. Finally, in the pre-meeting before the championship game, the coach says "we are here to win a championship".