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How do you explain things to your colleagues? How do you convince your superiors? How do you persuade clients?

In school, I never learned how to communicate well. A lot of times I had good ideas but I couldn’t convince. It felt like banging my head against a wall.

Your idea is worthless if you can’t package and sell it.

I made the typical mistakes: I always explained how I got to my idea. People got distracted before I had finished.

In university, I got lucky:

For a semester, I had a class on effective communication run by a senior partner at a famous management consulting company.

I knew I had found gold. I started applying it in my family, with friends, and later at work as a consultant and team lead.

The more I practiced, the more attention and engagement I got from listeners. I started looking more senior at work and winning over people.

Communication became one of my main levers for success.

So what to do? How do I explain complex issues without losing my listeners?

The answer is the Pyramid Principle used by large consulting firms and beyond.

The Secret Pyramid Principle Explained

People who are looking for information aren’t like readers of crime novels. They don’t enjoy identifying with the protagonist or revel in waiting to find out whodunit.

Journalists learn: Don’t bury the lead. The most important part of the story has to be upfront.

As US President Harry Truman said famously:

“Give me a one-handed economist! All my economists say ‘On the one hand…on the other hand’.“

Don’t bury your core message in adventurous twists and turns. Don’t talk about your clever analyses and conversations.

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