In discussion with someone I respect we were talking about how to project a positive image to those higher up the management chain. He suggested that you have a 5 minute and 20 second pitch on a variety of topics.
Its very hard as a technologist to describe something without dropping into the internals, because not to-do so would create an ambiguous description. Its very hard to know what NOT to say to ensure that you continue to project an accurate image of what you are trying to describe. I have been thinking about this recently and have decided that when presenting upwards I should be less interested in what something is and more focused on why something is. Its pretty easy to describe a benefit in terms of a delivery, which requires less detail of the delivery. This refocusing works for the project I am working on and will help (I think) in later discussions.
I intend to experiment more with this way of thinking and try and create 5 minute and 20 second versions of other things that are important to me. It takes time to craft this version but the construction creates insight into the ‘thing’. I hope as I get better this will create a method of thinking that will be useful.
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