Rachel Hanfling’s 4 Steps To Better Communication

Summary

Rachel Hanfling outlines four essential steps to enhance communication effectiveness, emphasizing audience understanding, clarity, relevance, and seeking honest feedback.

Abstract

Rachel Hanfling, an expert in communication, provides a concise guide to improving one's ability to convey messages effectively. Her four-step plan, featured in a conversation with Marie Forleo, includes meeting the audience's needs by researching and understanding their interests, avoiding insider jargon to ensure clarity, focusing on key messages by eliminating unnecessary details, and obtaining sincere feedback from detached sources. These steps are designed to create a connection with the audience through relatable and relevant content, ensuring that the message is both understood and impactful.

Opinions

The writer emphasizes the importance of tailoring content to the audience's needs and interests, stressing that writing should prioritize the reader's perspective.
There is a strong opinion against the use of insider jargon, suggesting that it can alienate readers and hinder effective communication, particularly in tech and programming niches.
The text advocates for ruthless editing to maintain relevance and avoid diluting the key message with extraneous details.
The author suggests that the best feedback comes from those who are not emotionally invested in the writer, as they can provide honest and constructive criticism necessary for growth.
The article concludes that the success of written communication lies in its ability to deliver a clear and relevant message to the audience.

The art of creating an effective connection.

Since I joined Medium, I've become a compulsive info-gatherer on the art of good and creative writing. Since communication and writing are synonymous, I did not hesitate to pounce on the conversation between Marie Forleo and Rachel Hanfling, that was published on Marie Forleo channel.

Rachel Hanfling is an international keynote speaker, media trainer and an Emmy-nominated TV producer. She is the founder of Rachel Hanfling’s MEDIA POWER PLAN®. Which is to say she is no pushover when it comes to effective communication, and this is her four steps to better communication.

Meet Readers Where They Are

There are hundreds of articles published on medium monthly which stresses the point that it is not only about brainstorming for ideas and what to write but making sure you actually do have an understanding of what your audience needs. People will only invest their time in something that is important to them. This is where you want to make your research on what is the topmost searched terms on the platform, to help you best tailor your message, instead of shooting aimlessly.

The goal here is to come to an understanding that, though you're the writer, your writing isn't for you, it is for your readers. Their need therefore should be your priority.

Let Go Of Insider Jargons

I've had situations where my interlocutors completely lost me, with the kinds of words they were using to explain something while trying to have an impactful communication. It felt like they were speaking an entirely different language. I live in Italy, so I know what it feels like to be completely lost in a conversation and not have a clue what is going on.

As a content creator, you want to make sure you leave inside lingo, inside. Use words and phrases that your readers can understand and relate to. Our folks in the Tech and Programming niche need this part more than the rest of us. When writing on medium, dummying it down is the smart thing to do.

Get Rid Of Extra Details

Focus on information that best express your key message. You can use your title as a reference to keep you grounded on your key message. You want to be merciless when you edit. Do not let irrelevant points seduce you into letting them pass. We solicit for attention by producing quality. The moment readers begin to see paragraphs that seem outside the reason why they clicked in the first place, they can easily move to the next article.

You want to hone down on relevance. What key points best serve your purpose? What is the actual message you are trying to get across? Before you start writing an article, ask yourself; “What is it I am trying to say here?”

Get Feedback From Unfamiliar Sources

This includes getting feedback from people who are not totally emotionally connected to you. People who can give you sincere feedback. The honest truth about feedback is, the best don't usually come from those people who love us. Our parents, our spouse, children and or friends. These people care about how we feel, they are sensitive not to hurt our ego. They either tell us what we want to hear or go easy on us.

You need to hear sincere and true feedback on your works. Now you have to be prepared because the truth stinks. But you need it if you want to get better at what you do. Coworkers and bosses are a good fit, to give us honest feedback.

A successful article is one with an effective message — an effective message contains both relevant information as well as ease of comprehension. The same tenets that hold true for effective communication.