Summary

In this episode, Andy interviews Ben Guttmann about his book, Simply Put: Why Clear Messages Win and How to Design Them. They discuss how to design and deliver messages that not only capture attention but also evoke meaningful responses. They delve into concepts like simplicity, fluency, and minimal messaging. Ben demonstrates how linguistic complexity can impact a message's success. Additionally, he shares practical examples, shedding light on how to make your communication more effective, regardless of your role in a project. Overall, the conversation highlights the importance of clear and effective communication in all aspects of life and work.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:49 Start of Interview
02:10 Defining the Book in Two Sentences
03:53 What Does It Mean to Be Simple?
04:30 How About Fluency?
09:54 They Don't Want The Drill, They Want the Hole
12:20 How Constraints Can Actually Help You
18:11 The Biggest No-Brainer in the Book
23:23 Removing Fluff
27:27 About Using Big Words
29:03 How AI Can Help
32:00 Interview Wrap Up
32:37 Andy Comments After the Interview
36:04 Outtakes

Learn More

You can learn more about Ben and his book at BenGuttmann.com.

If you’d like more on this subject, here are some episodes to check out:

Episode 378, with Bill McGowan, about saying it right the first time
Episode 349, with Tina Kuhn, on how to communicate with different personalities
Episode 342, with Krister Ungerbock about his book TalkShifts--how simple changes to what we say can make a difference
Episode 195, with Celeste Headlee about her book We Need to Talk

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Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!

Talent Triangle: Power Skills

The following music was used for this episode:

Music: Brooklyn Nights by Tim Kulig
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/11192-brooklyn-nights
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Music: Quantum Sparks [Full version] by MusicLFiles
Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/10996-quantum-sparks-full-version
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

PPP 407 | How to Get Your Message Read, Understood, and Acted Upon, with author Ben Guttmann

People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

PPP 407 | How to Get Your Message Read, Understood, and Acted Upon, with author Ben Guttmann