You’re listening to a high powered speaker give an impressive presentation. But at times it’s like you are hearing a foreign language. You have a good vocabulary, but you feel like you should have brought a dictionary. You find yourself jotting down words to look up later, and discover that you’ve missed key parts of the presentation.

You’ve been bamboozled by an obfuscator.

Obfuscation: “The activity of obscuring people’s understanding, leaving them baffled or bewildered. To make so confused or opaque as to be difficult to perceive or understand.” {www.Dictionary.com}

Beware of obfuscators. They sound brilliant. They must be brilliant because their vocabularies are so superior. Their incomprehensible erudite commentary must be important because no one can understand it.

I first learned the “value” of obfuscation when I decided to major in philosophy in college. I was searching for the meaning of life. I began with introductory classes. I read the assigned readings and wrote papers analyzing what I had read. My papers were clear, easy to understand and to the point. I received grades of “C” or “B-”. Those grades confused me. What was I missing? I thought I understood what I was reading. I was not accustomed to getting poor grades.

I was upset.

I decided to try an experiment. I used my thesaurus to find obscure words to replace my clear ones. I obfuscated everything I said. I replaced my easy to understand paragraphs with cognitive opaqueness yielding professorial accolades: grades of B+ and A.

I learned to communicate at a college level, using the most opaque words I could find in my thesaurus. My professors were impressed. Many business journals are written in this academic style as well. When I began to write computer user manuals and train people, I discovered that my language needed to be more accessible. I had to unlearn my college lessons and use language people could readily take in and remember.

As a communicator, is your goal to sound impressive? Or is it to deliver information that people can understand and use?

If you really want people to understand you, if you really want to make your point, don’t force people to reach for a dictionary when you speak or write.

I remember lying on my back in the grass  on a warm sunny day in San Francisco. I was a little girl and the grass smelled fresh and clean. There were a few clouds in the sky. They were puffy and imagination filled. It was quiet and I was alone. It felt like I was one with the universe.

That I remember this moment tells me that it was special. It tells me that I need frequent doses of natural serenity. I need moments alone to reflect and refresh.

What do your stories tell you about who you are and what you treasure?

For example, when I worked for Occidental College, the faculty wanted “online registration.” To them, that meant that the Registrar staff would have terminals to enter data at registration. To me, it meant having students registering themselves in their classes. I listened to what they described and when I asked more questions, I heard that making the process good for the students was just as important as making it good for the faculty. You see, at Oxy, the faculty serve the students, not the other way around.

The result was that I designed and programmed the original version of Oxy’s registration system, “Reggie.” The students, the faculty, and the Registrar staff all loved it. So did I.

See my event on Facebook or http://bit.ly/1a9Nl3

Here is the invitation. Feel free to copy and email this:

Are you struggling to find a job? Do you know someone who is?

How you talk about yourself and your accomplishments can make the difference between going unnoticed and getting the interview.

Strategic Bragging can make the difference between going home discouraged and getting another chance.

In this workshop you will learn how to:

=> Choose exactly the right thing to talk about
=> Be confident when you brag
=> Map out your success strategy

This workshop is free for out of work job seekers. Please extend this invitation to any you know. Have them email me at Sally@DefiningStory.com so I have enough workbooks available.

We bought a box of apples and 4 little pumpkins. The man transferred the apples to a cardboard box and gave me a bag for the pumpkins. The apples had been picked just that morning. He said he grew peaches too. About half of his orchard was apples and the other half peaches. He gave us his card so we could call him to find out when the peaches were ripe.

I always took pride in the fact that I am rarely bored. If I expect to have to wait somewhere, I take a book or magazine to read. I thought about that man just sitting there with nothing to do. I thought and thought about him. His eyes were so happy. He was content. He wasn’t bored. He worked hard when it was time to work and he rested when it was time to rest.

Meditation is a popular practice today. You can take classes or buy tapes to help learn how. I realized that the old man knew how to meditate. He sat on his chair on a lovely fall day. Maybe he was thinking about something, but my hunch is that his mind was clear and he was taking in the beauty of a perfect day.

Sit down somewhere in a peaceful setting and clear your mind. You can be in a field by a stream, in a library or in the bathtub. Take in the beauty around you. Listen to the sounds. Relax and enjoy being alive.

Last night I heard a small story about a man who took his wife and newborn son on a 5 hour plane trip to visit the in-laws. He had us on the edge of our chairs as he maneuvered his 6′7″ frame into his seat. We were laughing, crying, and commiserating with his plight. He could make many points from this story. “You can take anything for 5 hours.” “Don’t take it personally.” “Learn from babies. Take a break and sleep.”

Ordinary stories can provide great learning. What’s your story?

I gave a presentation on Strategic Bragging this morning. Several of the attendees were worried about what my friend, Steve Dorfman, calls “Me Monsters.” Me Monsters are people who are only interested in themselves. You want to turn invisible and run away when you get trapped by one of these bores.

Bragging tastefully is simply telling the story about how you helped your client. It’s mostly about the results they got.

Bragging helps people really get what you do. Bragging helps people know what kind of clients you serve and it helps them recognize your value.  One more thing. Bragging helps them see where they or someone they know can get their needs met.

It’s all about serving others while you make a profit.

I’d rather hear a story about a woman who cut school, sneaked out at night, got in trouble, got picked up for being a prostitute (but really wasn’t one), got pregnant… And then she realized that she didn’t want to bring up her daughter that way, and went to junior college at night… She got her degree in business and now employs 30 young women.

The power of story is when we can learn from the mistakes of others, so we don’t have to suffer ourselves.

The best marketing tool is a true, well crafted story.

I’m so glad you stopped by.  When you need someone to remember what you said, anchor your facts with a story. When you want someone to take action, tell a story.

This blog is about storytelling. Please make comments and ask questions.