Last week, we played with the ways that including an unexpected element in
your messages makes them more sticky. In this article, I’m going to reveal
the secret that every NLP Trainer knows (or at least should know) – that
while language can be artfully vague, life never is. Compare the following
two descriptions:
Description 1
When I woke up yesterday morning, I had some water & strawberries.
Description 2
Yesterday, I was awoken by the sound of birdsong, & the bright morning
sunshine pouring through my window. I jumped out of bed, & felt the cool
floor-tiles against the soles of my feet as I walked into the kitchen &
filled a blue glass tumbler with ice cold water. As I felt the cool liquid
splashing down my throat, I asked myself “What would you really enjoy eating
right now?” I opened the fridge door & a flash of red caught my eye –
strawberries! I put a handful of the plump red berries in a colander, rinsed
them under the tap, as I caught their delicious scent rising to my
nostrils. As I sank my teeth into their firm flesh, an explosion of flavour
filled my senses, & I was filled with a deep sense of satisfaction.
What’s the difference? The first description gives us the facts, in a
straightforward way that doesn’t particularly connect with our senses. We
understand what happened, but we don’t EXPERIENCE it.
Human neurology was developed for a world of things & experiences, a world
of smells, tastes, sights, sounds, touches & feelings. The second
description gives us access to those experiences. They are CONCRETE.
So,
to recap: in Dan & Chip Heath’s superb book “Made to Stick”, they reveal the
master keys to making your messages & ideas “sticky”, so people will pay
attention to them, understand them, act on them & pass them on:
·
Simplicity
– They convey something in a way that is simple & straightforward.
·
Unexpected
– They use surprise, interest & curiosity to get & keep attention.
·
Concrete –
They connect with what we can see, hear, feel, smell & taste.
·
Credible –
They are believable (testable against your own experience, if possible).
·
Emotional
– They connect with us on an emotional level
·
Stories –
Stories resonate deeply with human neurology – they’re the ultimate delivery
system for ideas.
This week we’re going to focus on how you can make your ideas concrete, an
idea that already shows up in lots of place:
·
Aesop’s
fables convey tips on how to live a happy life, contained in memorable
stories.
·
Product
developers & software developers build prototypes, dummy models of the end
product for people to interact with & give feedback on.
·
NLP
Trainers tell stories packed with concrete experiences (& using all the
senses) to get ideas & messages across
·
The top
marketers have a mental image of their ideal customer. They know his/her
name, age, habits, behaviours, values, needs, wants & desires. They evaluate
all their offers against this concrete mental image.
1) Choose something that you want other people to do.
It
might be something you want them to learn, to buy, to do, to care about. For
instance, a few weeks ago, we did an offer on our “Better Coaching Skills
with NLP” audios. I wanted people to try them for themselves.
2) Find a way to make your message more concrete.
With the ‘Better Coaching Skills with NLP” audios, I decided to tell the
story of when I used to dream about becoming a coach. Check this out:
Imagine being gently woken up by the sound of birds singing and the warmth
of the sun on your face. As you open your eyes & see the bright, yellow
sunshine pouring in through your window, you look at the clock and feel a
rush of joy & gratitude as you remember that you don’t need to commute
to the office anymore, because you work for yourself.
Once you’re up and dressed, you make your way to a local café for a mug of
something wonderful, and a delicious, nourishing breakfast,
before seeing your first client at 10am.
As you prepare for the coaching session, you feel a deep sense of purpose,
the sense that you’re on the right path. The coaching session is
challenging, but you have some flashes of brilliance as you follow your
intuition & use your skills – the hours of practice you’ve put in have
really paid off! The unmistakeable sound of deep gratitude in your client’s
voice is genuinely rewarding, & you feel that rush of joy all over again.
Then it’s time to feed your fascinations – there are so many things you’re
into, & it’s so good to have the time to nourish your mind. There’s another
client session to prepare for that afternoon, but there’s plenty of time –
the way you’ve got your business structured means that you’ve got
comfortable cashflow for the foreseeable future, leaving you free to
focus on following your passion and helping people to fulfil their
potential.
I
could have made this even more concrete, by adding some specific details,
for instance: you look at the blue LED readout on the clock that tell you
it’s 8am.
Specific details help people remember. Why? Because they have to imagine
them to understand them, & having imagined them, they’re fresh in their
mind.
The
key to bear in mind is that the human neurology has developed for a world of
things & experience, not a world of words. In order to make your idea more
concrete:
a)
If
possible, give people an interactive experience of your idea, using
prototypes etc.
b)
If that’s
not possible, tell them stories that get them to interact mentally with your
idea, using concrete details.
c)
If that’s
not possible, at least ensure that the language you use connects with the
world of the senses – smells, tastes, pictures, sounds, touches & feelings.
Have a great week,
Best wishes
Your friend
Jamie
Jamie Smart
director of training
jamie.smart@saladltd.co.uk
If you have found this tip useful, please share it with any friends,
family, colleagues and associates who you think will be interested. You are
welcome to reprint it (with copyright and subscription information) and
continue to enjoy the tips. I am always grateful for any comments,
criticisms or other feedback that you may have. Please send them to
jamie.smart@saladltd.co.uk
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