Finding Your Message

I have been asked by several people if this blog is about public speaking or about written communications. In fact, the answer is “yes”. It is about both of them. Messaging occurs any time you communicate, regardless of the medium. The basic rules are the same, but the way of implementing them is different. In spoken communications, you have to be very careful how you present your message, because the audience must absorb it at the time you say it, and cannot go back. A written document can be more detailed because the audience can go back and re-read anything that didn’t register the first time. However, just because you are writing a document doesn’t mean you can forget any of the basic rules of messaging: put yourself in your audience’s shoes, and what is your point? In later postings I will discuss some of the specifics of getting across your message oral or written form.

We have talked about ways of making your point, but so far haven’t gone far into understanding how to figure out what your point really is. Your point, or message, needs to be short. Ten items is not a message, it is a platform. A good example of this can be found (once again) in the current US elections. In a recent interview with Newsweek magazine, Hillary Clinton said she believes she won the New Hampshire primary because she “found her voice”. In fact, what she said was that previously she had been talking about her plans, but her message wasn’t getting through. “I get a little out there, with details, with five-point plans for this and 10-point plans for that, and I think that what I’m proposing really is both achievable and important, but it’s not what gets me up, so why should it get voters excited?”

This quote summarizes what is wrong with so many presentations, white papers, speeches, and emails in every walk of life: politics, business, schools and day-to-day communication. Plans are crucial for implementing something, and to get people to follow you, you probably need to have some plans. But you won’t get their attention, and certainly not their support and excitement, with a plan. You need a message.

So let’s take an example. You have a big plan to re-organise how your team operates. You know that by changing this computer system and having everyone do that thing and fill in timesheets covering these areas, the team will be more efficient and productive. You have a plan. The first step of the plan needs to be “get the team’s agreement”. Because you are dealing with people, not machines. If you ever forget that (and many people do forget it, to their ultimate dismay) the greatest plans in the world will come to nought. Getting the team’s agreement, what is sometimes called their “buy-in”, depends on having a message that they accept. Generally speaking, if you are proposing change, the message must be “we need to change”. It sounds simple, but the simplicity is deceiving. People are naturally resistant to change, so your message needs to include the reasons for the change. The two primary motivating factors for change are (a) fear of the consequences or (b) anticipating the benefits. Fear tends to have a very short-term effect, anticipation generally lasts longer. However, depending on the situation, you may have no choice. If your organization will be eliminated if results don’t improve, being open and above-board about it with the staff will generate fear, but can also generate solidarity and a sustained group effort. On the other hand, if your improved productivity could lead to major bonuses for the staff, that anticipation can generate positive activity, too. However, benefits must not seem too distant or abstract or they will have no impact. If your message is “we must change”, whether the reason is fear or anticipation, its impact will fade away over time, so it is essential to have constant follow-ups. Status reports for the team, encouragement on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.

The “we must change” message can be a powerful one, but it must be coupled with a vision for how to get there from here, otherwise cynicism, hopelessness and despair set in. Your message becomes transformed into “there is no way to change”. This is where your 'five-point plan for this and 10-point plan for that' become very important. They back up your message.

A plan with no point is just busy-work, a message with no plan is hot air.