Bird songs and public speaking

A friend sent me this comic yesterday:

It made me smile. I hope it makes you smile too.

But that’s not why I’m sending it to you. I’m sending it because there’s a serious lesson for effective communication hidden in this comic.

Now, a lot of gurus would say I should tease the lesson, create an ‘open loop’, and all that jazz.

No thanks. Here’s the whole lesson:

Speak your audience’s language, not yours.

That’s it. I could leave the email there – and I considered it.

But for the sake of completeness, and to try to persuade you to take this simple lesson seriously, let’s examine this a little further.

Yes, it’s a simple lesson. And yes, you may have heard it before. But this is, sadly, a rule more honoured in the breach than the observance, as old Bill Shakespeare put it.

But as is the case with the two birds in today’s comic, no matter what you’re saying, it simply won’t be heard or understood by your audience unless you’re speaking their language.

Which means you’re wasting your breath. And worse than that, they could actually be hearing the wrong message.

People used to say you can’t sell ice boxes to Eskimos. Why? Because it’s so cold there, there’s no need for a box to keep things cold, right?

Sure, that’s right. But it’s also narrow thinking. It’s speaking your language (in this case, the language of those who first invented and used it), not theirs.

So about 70 years ago, a very bright salesman went out and sold tons of ice boxes to Eskimos.

How did he do it?

He simply spoke their language.

He knew they didn’t need to keep things cold. But – given the cold – they might be interested in something to keep things from getting cold. And since ice boxes are insulated, they can be used that way – to keep things warm, just as much as to keep things cold.

That was their language. So that’s what he spoke – and he sold a lot of ice boxes.

You probably aren’t selling ice boxes, but every time you speak in front of an audience, you’re selling your ideas, your message, your company/business, and you.

And you’re wasting your time and breath if you’re speaking the wrong language.

If you can’t see how to apply that for your own speaking, I have nothing for you.

But if you can, and you want to guarantee you’re speaking your audience’s language, not your own, then reach out, and let’s talk. Send me an email to [email protected] and we’ll see if and how I can help you.

It might be to write for you. It might be to train you or your people. It could be as simple as an audit/review. Or, if we’re not suited, I’ll tell you.

So you risk nothing by reaching out, except a little of your time and mine.

Food for thought.

Talk soon,

Alexander