When arranging flowers, balloon bouquets, or business
presentations, do you use the rule of three? With flowers and balloons,
optically we prefer odd-numbered or non-symmetric arrangements. Impress your
friends with this tip, don't make a balloon bouquet of two or four balloons,
stick with three!
Before I get to business presentations, I want to relate a
cute baseball story to provide greater context for the rule of three.
“Clayton
coached T-ball with a fellow who was 6'10". At 5'7" it is safe to say
he really looked up to this person. They were coaching five-year-old kids and
this was their foray into baseball.
At one of their early practices, Bill saw Clayton providing
instruction on how to hit the ball off the "tee". He asked him what he
was doing. Clayton’s many years of baseball behind him, he guessed he looked at
him a bit dumbfounded. Clayton explained he was providing direction on hitting
the ball. One of Clayton’s life lessons was about to begin.
Bill said, "Clayton, you can only tell the kids three
things. It is all they will remember - if you are lucky!" Bill also
suggested Clayton would be more successful if he related each point to
something the kids could visualize or were clues to help them. Lastly, he told Clayton
consistency and repetition is good.
So, step one became how to set up in the batter's box. Clayton
suggested their feet became tree trunks with roots going into the ground so
they didn’t move. Their "code" when they approached the batter’s box
became ROOTS! The second was to watch the
bat hit the ball. Their code was to take their first two fingers and point to the
eyes, as a reminder to WATCH the bat hit the ball. Sounded simple enough, and
with practice most did. Lastly, they had to remember to run. That is where the
parents were quick to help the coach by yelling from the stands RUN, RUN when the
hit was made. Their first batter in the first game hit the ball and ran ... you
guessed it, straight out to the second base and kept going! They learned a lot that
year!
Bill later explained to Clayton, not only kids, but adults
have short memories. Tell them one thing they'll remember it, tell them two and
you are still safe, tell them three and they may remember it but don’t go past
three. He called this the rule of three.”
How do you leverage the rule of three in business?
- - First, prioritize the three most important points you want to communicate.
- - Second, relate each point to something familiar to your audience, capture their interest and attention.
- - Third, be consistent and repeat the three points to reinforce your message.
Think about your next presentation. What are the three most
critical points you want to message? Do you begin and end by reinforcing them?
If you are using PowerPoint, limit your bullets to three per slide. This forces
you to think in threes and prioritize your communication. Lastly, how do your
points relate to your audience? Are they a call to action? Why are they important? How will they benefit
your audience? A wise person once recommended, "Tell them what you are
going to tell them. Tell them. Then finish by reminding them what you told
them!"
Start practising the rule of three. You will be surprised
how well it will work for you!
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