by Henrik Flensborg

This week's article is provided to us by a new networking friend of ours from Scandanavia, Henrik Flensborg. Henrik writes about something that applies to all of us . . being able to communicate effectively with others . . .especially regarding compensation plans. Henrik is a Master Networker subscriber and has taken the next step to create his own online ezine called "Unique Infozine." I felt it was appropriate for us to get Henrik's view of communication and it just seemed right coming from another corner of the world. Thanks Henrik for you contribution.

W O R L D M A P S
My map of the world - and yours

Have you ever - without any luck - tried to explain the compensation plan of your MLM to a prospect who simply couldn't understand it? Was the problem that he was stupid - I guess not. The problem could very well be the difference in his and yours "maps of the world".

Have you ever experienced a teacher who couldn't teach you a specific topic, only to have another teach it to you in minutes? The problem is not that you are stupid, and not that one of the teachers did not know his stuff. The second teacher simply understood the difference between his map of the world and yours, and he succeeded because he stepped onto your map, and explained the subject in terms that you were familiar with.

Have you ever experienced someone using the same line over and over again trying to explain something to you ? You probably got all the words right the first time, but you didn't get meaning of the sentence. Did it help you to have the line repeated ? - I guess not, and the "can't you see it????" after every sentence didn't help either.

We all see something different in the things we observe; a bricklayer and an environmentalist watching an industrial chimney see different thing despite the fact that they are looking at the same chimney. The bricklayer notices the construction-technique and the color of the bricks while the environmentalist only sees the polluting smoke. If the environmentalist were to point at the chimney stating "look at that mess" would the bricklayer instinctively look at the polluting chimney, or would he first see the leftover pile of bricks?

We all have our own ways of seeing the world around us, and a "vocabulary" of concepts and terms that we feel comfortable with, and it will help you immensely if you keep this in mind when you're communicating. If you are not getting through with your message the first time don't just repeat the same "line" over and over again as it will probably cause your prospect to lock up. Your prospect doesn't want to look at himself as being stupid so he puts up a mental defense with you being the incompetent part - "He can't even explain a simple thing properly - boy he must be stupid".

So what should you do to become a better communicator and get your messages across? - You should try moving onto his map of the world - listen to the terms he uses, and use them yourself.

Once you realize that the main ingredient in communication is listening, and you pay attention to other peoples maps of their world, and you operate standing on their maps, then you are on your way to becoming a better communicator.