Can You Effectively Distill Complex Topics?

5 Tips for Success

Photo by Lysander Yuen on Unsplash

Do you have presentations when you must distill ideas or information to a new audience?  I do this for a living, every single day in my classroom.  I have explained North Korea’s communism and Japan’s samurai class system to fifth graders.

Explaining complex ideas is a skill set, and it’s one that takes time to develop.  I have spent years refining my craft.  Over time, I have learned what works and what is ineffective.  Now, I use several strategies to be most successful.

1. Know your audience

Consider your audience carefully prior to your presentation.  Is the group new to these ideas, or do they have some familiarity?  My audience is nearly always new to the concepts I am sharing.  A few students may have some experience with certain ideas, but they do not generally grasp the concepts very well.

I have to prepare my presentations to their level of understanding.  For example, when I introduce Japan’s samurai class system, I have to define “class system”.  My students have no idea what this means and no frame of reference.  Without an understanding of the concept, they cannot comprehend the hierarchy and its purpose.

Even if you are preparing a business presentation, you need to consider your audience.  I have presented to board members multiple times about programs my colleagues and I designed.  Because they were not involved in the day to day operations of the organization, I had to focus on broad strokes rather than nitty gritty details.

2. Use familiar language

Every industry and organization has jargon.  If I were presenting to you and started throwing around phrases such as PBL, SLP, IEP, or SEL, would you understand me?  You quickly lose an audience when you begin to throw around phrases like this, so I eliminate sophisticated jargon.

When I teach geography, I must introduce certain vocabulary words before I begin using them.  For example, I cannot just say the Korean peninsula and expect students to understand the implications of living on one.  I have to spend the time explaining what a peninsula is and compare it to something they know, such as Florida.

I seek other words and phrases with similar meanings and use those instead.  Or, I take the time to define the words or acronyms before I begin the presentation.  I may include them on my slideshow or write on a whiteboard in the room.

3. Use analogies

When I am sharing complex concepts, I often use analogies to help with understanding.  What are some similar ideas my audience understands?  How can I compare my topic to something familiar?

For example, when I teach supply and demand, I often use the value of having a bag of candy.  I ask students to imagine how valuable this bag of candy is if only one person holds it.  Then I say, who would like a piece of candy?  Of course, all hands raise.  I then ask students to imagine they all have the same bag of candy.  Is it as valuable?  Everyone understands quickly.

Are there simple life analogies you can use to explain your topic?  Or, are there similarities from your industry?

4. Use simple steps to explain processes

How do you explain a process?  Depending on your topic, this could be long and involved.  Does your audience, however, need all of the details to understand the process?  Or, could you provide a simplistic version.

When I teach the writing process, I distill the cycle to a few simple steps.  If you have ever written a lengthy piece, you know the process can be long and involved.  It includes correcting spelling, correcting grammar, getting others’ opinions, considering a title, and so much more. I limit the process to the basics.  Brainstorm, Draft, Peer Edit, Revise.

Providing a simplistic version helps your audience remember the information.  Of course, you will have additional details that exist within each category, but sharing all of the information will cause overload.  

5. Be prepared to pivot

Not all of your plans will be effective. You may need to adjust in the midst of a presentation or explanation.  Plan ahead and have additional ideas in your back pocket to aid.

When students struggle to understand a new concept, I often start over and switch angles.  One concept that has been traditionally difficult for me to teach is the supply and demand idea.  As a young teacher, I would often start the analogy with broader, more technical examples. I would talk about the cost of oil or grocery store prices. 

Over time, I learned to pivot and pare down my example to an experience in my audience’s small world.  The world of candy.  What are key elements of your audience’s world?

Having conversations with those outside your industry, or with no knowledge of your idea, is an excellent way to learn what works.  Social media is also a great place to refine your skills, particularly Twitter with its character limit.  

One final suggestion- Ask yourself this question-How would I explain it to a fifth grader?