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Don’t over rely on sports terms and analogies. You might find that
you're not connecting with your listeners.
We relearned this recently when working with a banking
technologist from Great Britain.
For example, he explained, you have to be careful if you use the
phrase “We had better just
punt on this one.”
For most of us, ”to punt” is a reference to American football. When
a team punts, it’s giving up, turning over the ball to the other
team. For example, you might say, ”Things aren’t going well on this project. I
think we need to punt.”
But this British client explained that as a Rugby player, he would
take the phrase “to punt” to be the complete opposite.
In Rugby, he points out, when you punt, the kicking team has the
chance to run down the field and get the ball, unlike in American
football. So even though it’s a risky play, it can result in a long
gain. If Rugby is your frame of reference, then you might use the
phrase “to punt” like this: “This project is having trouble but I
have an idea that might really help us. I think we should punt and
see what happens.”
Take care when you select analogies and jargon. Make sure that your
“punt” is the same as your audience’s “punt.”
At Speechworks we help our clients learn how to communicate in a way
that connects and persuades. If you’re interested in becoming a
great communicator give us a call at 404-266-0888 or check out our
website at
www.speechworks.net. |
