Next level communicators use cheat codes.
Next level communicators use cheat codes.
People who are truly great at something tend to make what they do look effortless. Think Steph Curry shooting a basketball, or Whitney Houston singing. While it’s true that hard work is a major factor to their success, the best of the best also use cheat codes. Yeh, Michael Jordan put in a ton of practice, but he also talks about reading the feet of his defender, and how that bit of information led to a lot of baskets. We call this a cheat code.
Everyone should have insider information, unknown to most, which helps us achieve sustained greatness. No, I’m not talking about cutting corners, or being unethical. Just discovering and utilizing techniques to accelerate your progress.
When it comes to communicating, here are some of my cheat codes:
Always know your next thought, so you’re free to chase unscripted thoughts. The best communicators are like jazz musicians, who have the faith to veer off the page and improvise, because they always know how to get back to the script. Structured spontaneity is what I call it. We preachers call it following the Holy Spirit. Preacher or not, there will be moments where you will feel surprised at what connects with your audience, and the urge to linger at that spot will wash over you. You’ll only do this if you know your next thought. Cheat code.
Everything on the big screen is always on my little screen. If you’re like me, there are key points and quotes which will show up on the big screen. I’ve had to learn the hard way, there will inevitably be moments where the technology fails, or the production people went on a smoke break, or to the potty. So it’s always good to never have to depend on the big screen.
Airplane mode and other digital stuff. I really could do a whole post about the digital blunders I’ve experienced as a communicator. Let’s see, we could talk about the time I didn’t turn on airplane mode on my iPad, and notifications about the economy, weather and my flight being delayed kept popping up. Nightmare. I could also talk about how I did turn on airplane mode on my iPad, but not on my iPhone. Even though my phone was on the front row, my smartwatch kept buzzing while I was speaking. Sometimes I just wish we could go back to the nineties! Secure your technology…that’s the lesson.
Read something simple. This is one of my best cheat codes. Whenever I prepare a message, I will spend plenty of time in the “deep end of the pool”- you know, doing scholarly study on the original language of my text, chasing rich theological themes and so on. Real heady stuff. I’ve also found reading an author who has written a book to the masses on my subject is one of the most fruitful cheat codes. Authors like Max Lucado, Margaret Feinberg and Kyle Idleman (just to name a few), have a way of simplifying the deep themes I’ve studied, and coloring the concepts with vibrant illustrations, which helps me to simplify the message. If I could give you just one cheat code to try, take this one and you’ll see immediate results.
Invest in Dropbox, or something similar. It’s a communicator’s worst nightmare: You’re sitting at a conference, and the speaker right before you has the audacity to teach on your exact text/subject. Yep, that’s happened to me. So what am I to do? I go to the bathroom stall, take out my iPad, click on Dropbox, where I scroll through my library of presentations as the sweat gathers on the screen. Twenty or so minutes later, I’m out of the stall, back in the auditorium and (kind of) ready to go. Thank you Dropbox (or Google Drive, or whatever).
Don’t have Logos? Get it…now. If teaching the Bible makes up any percentage of your communication, drop everything right now and get Logos. They just moved to a subscription model, and it’s way cheaper than it's ever been. They are the best bible study software on the planet, and please don’t tell me you’ve found one better, because I can assure you, you haven’t. Okay, very important. Let me give you a cheat code for this cheat code. Logos is going to overwhelm you with the amount of resources it has. When you open up Logos, I want you to picture yourself with a fishing rod walking down to a huge lake. When I would go fishing with my dad, all I wanted to know was show me the hot spots. I never thought about fishing the whole lake, just a really small, productive portion of it. That’s how I want you to view Logos- it’s a huge “lake,” and find your spots. What’s my spot? Simple. Everytime I open up Logos, I click on my passage, hit the passage and exegetical guides, and off I go. There’s a little more to it than that, so maybe I’ll do a post and get a marketing deal with the company!
What I’m Reading:
Just finished, The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead.
