“Information is a weak form of communication” – Viola Spolin
I like that thought. I think most of us default to thinking the opposite. Years of boring schooling and rote memorising have trained us to think that way. We overestimate our capacity to process all this information… and we assume that everyone can process it at the same rate. Hence the tyranny of powerpoint presentations.
PR agencies seduce clients with the promise of making them “thought leaders” but are more likely to create boredom and pomposity. Privately or not-so-privately we’ll resent the person who claims thought leadership because really we’d rather a more level relationship where something new and interesting can happen. Indeed, any form of leadership will reply on gesture, action and performance as much as an ability to convey information.
