The saying goes that a leader needs to describe a new thing to others seven times before they start to understand it. I think that is true. What I also think is, a leader needs to describe a new thing to others seven times before the leader starts to understand what they are really talking about.
This is how it goes for me. I have a great idea. I think it through carefully and methodically. I think about how I will say it. Then, the first person I share it with responds with a confused look on their face.
What I used to think was, I just needed to tell them the same thing another six times and then they will get it. I now think it is wrong to place all the blame on the listener.
What I know to be true is that what I am describing gets clarified for me every time I share it. The seventh person gets a much better presentation than the first. I find better ways to say it, clearer content, better examples, and what I am aiming for gets refined down to what I wanted to talk about the whole time.
My advice: work on your new thing, find the best way to talk about it, then expect that you will share it with seven different people (at least) before you start to try and convince the masses that it is a good idea. If you do that, maybe it won’t take seven times for them to get it.
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