Heuristics #11 – Communicators

Get them to get it!

The Context

People communicate every day. Communicators remain confident that their messages are being received and understood. Many receivers however remain confused or indifferent. Whether or not you ‘get them to get it is a bit of a quandary.

The Question

When we talk about communication, are we referring to the process or the transfer of information or both? My sense is that communication invariably has only one objective, namely; for the recipient to get, by way of interpretation, the same message as the sender originally intended. When has an exchange of únderstood’ information taken place?

Heuristic 1: Reduce communication barriers

Intentionally tailor your communication in terms of language, jargon, circumstances, cultural discrepancies, potential misconceptions, timing, and communication medium. 

Heuristic 2: Follow an effective process

Be clear on the purpose, value proposition, workflow, context, components, and potential outcomes of your communication.

Heuristic 3: Mitigate your communication risks

Group what is foundational (purpose and value proposition), that which you can control directly (workflow and components), and that which you can only influence (context and outcomes). Proportion your efforts on the things you can determine and control directly in order to best foster the intended outcomes.