Communication Tips for Leadership – 5 of 15

Communication Tips  (SERIES)

Tip #5.  Speak their Dialect

Your audience will disengage if you communicate too much or too little to them.  Delivering the correct amount and type of information according to their preferences helps them engage more quickly and easily.  Consider the following tips when crafting the content of your message.

Deductive Reasoning respond well to:

• Less information
• Broad focus
• Purpose-oriented statements

Inductive Reasoning respond well to:

• More information
• Narrow focus
• Action-oriented statements

Another way to look at it is that deductive thinkers start with a general concept then take it to specific notion. Less is more for them.  They like things presented as a general statement, then ask questions that lead them to specific knowledge.

For inductive thinkers, it is the opposite. They start with a specific notion and follow it to the general concept. More information is better for them. They like things presented as action items, then ask questions that lead them to the general concept.

Consider the people you learn and what type of thinkers they are. It can have a huge impact on the frustration meter (from both sides). As with most things, in a group setting, a hybrid approach may be most effective.