In a previous article (Parshas Toldos), we discussed the principle
of pacing and leading as a first step towards developing effective
communication. The next step you want to become aware of is being
on the right level of abstraction. In Neuro-Linguistics, this is called
"the Hierarchy of Ideas." Speaking in a more abstract manner
is called `chunking up,' speaking in a more specific, detailed manner
is referred to as `chunking down.'
Let us consider three approaches to a common household request.
"Please clean up here."
"Please wash the dishes, dry them with the red towel and then
put them in the cabinet over the refrigerator. Please do it within
the next ten minutes."
Some people will feel comfortable with "Please clean up here."
Through their experience or by intuition, they understand what you
mean. They would find the second sentence annoying and feel that you
are nagging them or speaking as if they were inexperienced at this
task. Other people will find "Please clean up in here" confusing.
Clean up what? Where? How? When? They would prefer clear, detailed
instructions. Finally, there are people who function best when they
hear the instructions somewhere in the middle:
"Please wash, dry and put away the dishes as soon as possible."
Misunderstandings are often a result of using abstract language when
specific language is called for. After all, "please clean up in
here" could mean doing the dishes, sweeping the floor, straightening
up the shelves or wiping off the counters -- or all of the above!
On the other hand, did you ever have the experience of conversing
with someone who spells out every last detail to you when you already
know just what they want?
Ideally, aim to be chunked down enough to avoid a misunderstanding,
but chunked up enough that your speech flows pleasantly. With
children this can be a little tricky. Since they are relatively inexperienced,
they may need to have things explained in greater detail. However,
they may want to be treated as adults and may get annoyed when you
start telling them precisely what to do. Too little explanation and
they put away the toys when you wanted the laundry folded. Too much
explanation and you may create unnecessary friction.
This can also be true with a new employee or worker. I remember a
house painter we hired who chose a particularly dark, ugly shade of
pink for a pattern in one of our rooms. Well... we asked for `pink'
and `pink' is what we got.
I used to run a small day camp in the summer. It was made perfectly
clear to every counselor that there was a "no hitting the campers
under any circumstances" policy. The very first day, one of the
campers complained to me that his counselor had twisted his arm. I
must have assumed that everybody understands that "no hitting"
implies no arm twisting, too.
While abstract speech can lead to misunderstandings, it can also be
a very powerful way of getting your message through. For instance,
Ehud Barak's campaign slogan in the recent Israeli elections was "Israel
wants a change." Analyzing this from a Neuro-Linguistic perspective,
every word was excellently chosen. Let's just focus on our subject,
the level of abstraction...
This slogan is pretty high up on the abstraction hierarchy. It says
nothing about how much change, how, when, where, what, with whom and
to whom will this `change' be. As such, almost all of the meaning
of the statement is left up to the listener's interpretation. To be
sure, on a conscious level, Barak's opponents found this statement
loathesome as they anticipated his changing the country in a direction
away from their values. But many, if not most, people living in Israel
really do want some kind of change (even if not exactly what Barak
had in mind). On an unconscious level, the statement rings at least
partially true. Do not underestimate the power this slogan had to
subtly influence people's perception of this man. Chunked up language
has become standard in politics and advertising. Look at it this way:
you can say something with very little content and make it sound profound
and meaningful. If you also allude to some cross-cultural value, it
can have tremendous mass appeal. One of the U.S. presidents referred
to World War One as "the war to end all wars." (That's a chunked
up statement, if there was one!) How exactly it was supposed to accomplish
this noble end, he did not explain and it did not take history very
long to prove him wrong. But to a war-weary world, it must have sounded
wonderful. You may find it interesting to scrutinize the words of
some of today's big political leaders to see how widely used this
kind of language is.
Let's examine advertising. We have all seen chunked down advertisements
like "one pill relieves runny nose, itchy eyes and headaches for
up to 12 hours when used as directed." When you are suffering
from a bad cold, these words have a certain sway. You are probably
familiar with Coca Cola's chunked up, "It's the Real Thing"
slogan. Would you say that Coke is more `real' than Pepsi or Schweppes
or Crystal? What, exactly, is so `real' about it? Obviously, there
is no `real' answer to these questions. Nevertheless, it is a very
persuasive slogan to a disoriented Western civilization groping for
some `real' meaning to life! Here's some food for thought: a couple
of years ago, Pepsi Cola put the chunked up slogan "a Taste of
America" on its soft drink bottles in Israel.
Which style has the greater power to persuade? I made my own little
research project perusing the advertisements in various periodicals.
The most popular form of advertising is a combination of a chunked
up slogan or statement followed by chunked down explanation. A variation
of this is a chunked down explanation followed by a chunked up slogan
or statement. This accounts for about 45% of advertising. About 35%
of the ads are basically chunked up. Ads that are primarily chunked
down account for only about 20%.
How can you know which style will best get your message through? In
teaching, you might consider going both up and down the hierarchy
of ideas. In private conversation, try this formula: pay attention
to your listeners' reactions as you speak, take note of the results
you are getting from your communication, and adjust the specificity/abstraction
accordingly. By now, you are aware that this is a pretty chunked up
statement. Of course, you also know what it means to you personally.
Ultimately, that may be all that really matters.
R' Kory welcomes comments at POB 57435 or email: info@nlpjerusalem.com
