This is from a TEDx lecture – the 15 minute video is embedded in the link with the short (18 paragraphs) article and I've also embedded the video below the link, and excerpted the first four paragraphs. If you have time, watch the video (as with all TED videos it's excellent- note title of video "Quantum Physics for a seven year old") but definitely read the article. That is, unless you never have to explain anything to anybody.
If you read it, you'll think "Of course, that's common sense" – but do you – or I – actually do it?
How to explain anything to anyone: 4 steps to clearer communication
“Have you ever had this experience?” asks physicist Dominic Walliman in a TEDxEastVan Talk. “You’re having a chat with someone, and they’re telling you something about a subject they’re very interested in or they know a lot about, and you’re following along. Then, at some stage you realize you kind of lost the thread of what they’re saying … You realize you have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about.”
When this has happened, you probably felt bad — like you just weren’t smart enough to understand what they were saying and you’ve wasted that person’s time.
Perhaps you’ve been on the other side, too. You were talking about something relatively complex and you could practically see the moment that your listener checked out. Not only is it uncomfortable but it’s also disheartening when what you’re saying is important, cool or valuable to the listener.
When you’re the speaker, “there are things you can do to improve this,” says Walliman. All you need to do is find a better way to explain your subject.
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