{"id":88711,"date":"2023-01-12T18:01:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-12T22:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=88711"},"modified":"2023-01-17T16:58:21","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T20:58:21","slug":"communicating-complex-ideas-simply","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/communicating-complex-ideas-simply\/","title":{"rendered":"Communicating Complex Ideas Simply: 2 Examples From Jeff Bezos"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>How can you make abstract concepts concrete? What are some techniques you can use to help people understand complicated concepts?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Complex ideas are often abstract, and abstract ideas are hard to understand. Communicating complex ideas simply is a skill, and Jeff Bezos has it. In<em> The Bezos Blueprint<\/em>, Carmine Gallo discusses how Bezos brings abstract ideas into the real world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keep reading for two examples of this skill in action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-example-1-two-pizzas-use-metaphors\">Example #1: Two Pizzas (Use Metaphors)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>One way that Bezos excels at communicating complex ideas simply is by condensing them into vivid metaphors. For example, after reading <em>The Mythical Man-Month<\/em>, Bezos wanted to share one of its basic insights: The larger the team, the more time and effort it takes for team members to communicate with each other and actually get their work done. Instead of explaining the theory or the mathematical formula that describes this phenomenon, Bezos crafted a simple metaphor: \u201cWe try to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-create-a-team\/\">create teams<\/a> that are no larger than can be fed by two pizzas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Bezos\u2019s Two-Pizza Metaphor Worked on Multiple Levels<\/strong><br><br>Frederick Brooks wrote <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-mythical-man-month\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>The Mythical Man-Month<\/em><\/a> as a guide for teams working on complex projects, and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/app\/book\/the-mythical-man-month#part-2-managing-teams\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">mathematical formula<\/a> in the book that Bezos referenced found that when more people are involved in a project, opportunities for miscommunication multiply exponentially. This was the problem Bezos was trying to prevent with his two-pizza rule.<br><br>But Bezos\u2019s metaphor was more than just a way to simplify the rule: It also conveyed an emotion. In <a href=\"https:\/\/shortform.com\/app\/book\/awaken-the-giant-within\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>Awaken the Giant Within<\/em><\/a>, Tony Robbins points out that when crafting metaphors, you should pay attention not just to the literal meaning you\u2019re trying to express, but also to the <a href=\"https:\/\/shortform.com\/app\/book\/awaken-the-giant-within\/chapter-7#empower-yourself-with-positive-metaphors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">layers of additional meaning the metaphor implies<\/a>. For example, Bezos\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.aws.amazon.com\/whitepapers\/latest\/introduction-devops-aws\/two-pizza-teams.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201ctwo-pizza teams\u201d<\/a> gives a rough guideline as to the ideal maximum size of a team, but it also conjures up images of a friendly, casual work environment and long hours spent on hard but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/fulfilling-work\/\">fulfilling work<\/a>.<br><br>Different metaphors\u2014say, \u201cpassenger van teams\u201d\u2014might describe a similar team size but lack the implications that made two-pizza teams so apt for Bezos\u2019s purposes.)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-example-2-six-football-fields-use-data-sparingly-illustrate-it\">Example #2: Six Football Fields (Use Data Sparingly, &amp; Illustrate It)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Gallo warns that it\u2019s especially important to find meaningful ways to explain data. Start by narrowing down which data you want to highlight: Too much data quickly confuses audiences, so focus only on the most important fact or two. Then, help your audience understand the data by <strong>placing it in context and giving them a concrete reference <\/strong>such as a physical comparison that makes it easier to imagine what a number really means. For example, Bezos once described Amazon\u2019s book selection by saying that it \u201cwould now occupy six football fields.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not only does this comparison ground Amazon\u2019s book inventory in the real world, but it also opens the door for you to tell a <em>story<\/em> about the number\u2014a story, perhaps, about why Amazon\u2019s superior selection is good news for customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: Some experts warn that while it\u2019s important that you interpret numbers for your audience, you should take care not to <em>misinterpret<\/em> the information you\u2019re presenting. In <a href=\"https:\/\/shortform.com\/app\/book\/how-to-lie-with-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>How to Lie With Statistics<\/em><\/a>, Darrell Huff explains that just because your data is accurate <a href=\"https:\/\/shortform.com\/app\/book\/how-to-lie-with-statistics\/chapter-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s directly related to what you\u2019re claiming to prove<\/a>. For example, if you wanted to convince your audience that Amazon\u2019s stock price is about to rise, citing its large book inventory might impress (and mislead) your audience, but it wouldn\u2019t prove the point.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How can you make abstract concepts concrete? What are some techniques you can use to help people understand complicated concepts? Complex ideas are often abstract, and abstract ideas are hard to understand. Communicating complex ideas simply is a skill, and Jeff Bezos has it. In The Bezos Blueprint, Carmine Gallo discusses how Bezos brings abstract ideas into the real world. Keep reading for two examples of this skill in action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":88714,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,14],"tags":[853],"class_list":["post-88711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication","category-management","tag-the-bezos-blueprint","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Communicating Complex Ideas Simply: 2 Examples From Jeff Bezos - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Communicating complex ideas simply is a skill, and Jeff Bezos has it. 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