The “curse of knowledge” is that when you know something, it’s extremely difficult to put yourself in the state of mind of someone who doesn’t know it.  This psychological tendency consistently blocks our ability to create ideas and messages that stick in the mind of our target audience.  We assume that they know things that they don’t because it’s common knowledge to us.  This “curse of knowledege” can make us miss the mark on our messages.

In the business book “Made to Stick” the authors identify 6 principles at work whenever an idea or message breaks through the clutter and really “sticks” in the mind of the audience.

1. Simplicity – stripping ideas/messages to their core so they’re easy to remember.
2. Unexpectedness – avoiding predictability in your statements.
3. Concreteness – using specific details to help people understand and remember ideas/message.
4. Credibility – doing what’s necessary to make your ideas/message believable.
5. Emotion – ensuring that others care about your ideas/message by making them feel something.
6. Stories – getting people to relate to and act on your ideas/message.

To communicate your message, simplicity is better than complexity.  Concreteness provides the details that resonate in the brain.  Credibility is essential to making people believe your message.  Unexpectedness jolts listeners into thinking in new ways.  Emotion makes people feel why your idea is important.  And a good story can move others to action.