| The name of
the game in communicating to another person is to take that important
thought in your mind and transmit it to another person or persons. For
a "turbo" boost to the process, you can create dynamic mental
pictures by using metaphors, examples, analogies, and similes. An example
is an illustration from the real world you are talking about. In explaining
an inventory reorder system you could say, "Calculate the amount
of stock used during the time it takes to receive a new order and label
that the reorder point. When the stock is used down to that level, place
an order." A better way might be, "Visualize a milk bottle that
is full. If you use 1/4 bottle of milk a day and it takes one day to secure
a new bottle, draw a line 1/4th of the way up on the bottle. That is your
reorder point. When the milk level drops to the line, get a new bottle".
The picture of the milk bottle will stick around a long time. The set
of words will be quickly forgotten, or not understood.
Another way to enhance a communication is to use an analogy or simile of what you are talking about. An analogy is an illustration which is usually simpler than the actual situation you are addressing. For illustration, if you are explaining the fact that planning ahead in a situation will make or break you, one might say, "You must build the ark before the flood comes." A simile is a comparison using "like" or "as." An illustration is "I felt like a kid in a candy store" (vs. "I was excited"). People who evoke mental images in their listeners are known to be interesting,
knowledgeable, and bright. Good speaking skills boil down not to not
only what someone is saying, but how someone says it. |
© 2002 John D. Toellner
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