Blog post author: Max Nelson, CommCore Intern
Can learning math make you a better communicator?
At CommCore, we think so. Make any briefing, speech, media interview, or presentation more memorable by mastering the Rule of Three.
Our experts teach two equations:
- 9×1=0: If you give your audience nine points to remember but don’t repeat them, your audience may walk away remembering nothing, or one of the points of least importance. The same rule applies to your visuals. If you place nine bullet points on a PowerPoint slide, your audience will be reading instead of listening.
- 3×3=1. Emphasize 3 key themes, and repeat each one 3 times in different ways. Your audience will walk away remembering at least one. This works because the more your audience hears a theme, the more important they will assume it is.
These simple equations are particularly important for expert technical Subject Matter Experts who tend to be steeped in data; they know so much, they want to share it all verbally or in PowerPoints so heavy they make audiences’ eyes glaze over. Think of this as a simple way to remember that less is more. In most cases, an audience is less interested in everything you know, and more interested in just what they need to know.