Let Your Words Do The Talking

Thoroughly, effectively and memorably expressing ideas is important for consultants to succeed. Metaphors are linguistic forklifts. A powerfully crafted word picture can heft even the heaviest concepts to any listener’s level, from the technicians on the IT team to upper management. Your colleagues are probably smart enough to understand complex ideas without metaphors, but their intellectual capacity doesn’t imply that they pay attention (often, quite the opposite is true)!

Master figurative language, and people won’t just understand what you mean, they’ll pay attention in the first place and, most importantly, remember it later.

Start with the Figurative

If I tell you that a metaphor is like a Cliff Notes guide to your idea, you immediately have a pretty good idea of what I mean. People like to start with the technical version of an explanation and then try to clarify later, but opening your presentation or written proposal with a metaphor will draw your audience in and give your ideas some conceptual scaffolding from the start.

Give Them Something to “See”

Idea retention is higher for specific rather than than purely conceptual language because it is dual-coded to both the sensory and semantic memory centers.

In other words, abstract ideas slide right off the brain, while concrete ideas stick like tar.

The first sentence more thoroughly expresses the idea, but you’re a lot more likely to grasp and remember the second. Whenever possible, pair the abstractions with words people can relate to.

Draw From Real Life

Your team doesn’t always have to go on a ride on a hypothetical boat, fight on a pretend battlefield or show up for would-be football practice. You can also draw from pop culture, landmarks and events and stories from your own life. Your listeners will be more likely to relate to and retain the information when you relate it to something personally familiar.

Make Cliches Your Own

Most cliches begin their lives as metaphors, but they basically become throw-away words that nobody remembers. You don’t have to be the next Walt Whitman, but changing them just a little bit can breathe a little life into a tired old saying.

Instead of, “Let’s not reinvent the wheel,” try, “Let’s not rewrite the Constitution.” Don’t “avoid cliches like the plague,” but “avoid cliches like a bag of snakes.”

Train Your Brain

Start by giving every email you write a once-over:

• Replace any conceptual jargon you can with concrete words.
• Weed out unnecessarily long or technical words (swap “utilize” for “use,” “incorporate” for “add,” etc.)
• Spot any cliches and make them your own.
• Try to pair any abstract statements with metaphors and examples.

Remember, you’re not writing a novel, you’re attempting to get an idea across in a clear and memorable way. So don’t go overboard with this. However, starting with your emails and other regular (bland) communications is a good exercise to get your brain in the habit of effective, down-to-earth communication. Soon, these techniques and word pictures will come naturally to you in emails, written proposals, and most importantly in oral presentations.