Speaking as persuasion
Photo by Kane Reinholdtsen on Unsplash
If writing gives us a way to work through our own thoughts, perhaps speaking provides an opportunity to more directly impact what others think. Continuing in our series about communication in academia, this week I’m arguing that speaking—whether that’s at an invited talk, in meeting with donors or policymakers, or sometimes just in conversation with a colleague—is about persuasion.
When you talk to others about your work, you are not simply presenting a list of activities that you’ve done or detailing the results that you’ve found, although that is certainly part of the content. What you are really trying to do is use the descriptions of those activities and results to pivot your audience’s thoughts in a particular way. You are trying to convince your audience that the problems and questions you tackle are worth considering, even if those questions are not necessarily in their field of expertise. Even casual conversations at a networking event or a passing conversation in the hallway can have an element of persuasion, whether you realize it or not. In all of these moments, you are asking your audience to engage with you and your work further. That continued engagement may then lead to a specific end goal of the persuasion, which is going to be different based on your audience.
The end goal could be a continued conversation or connection, a declaration of personal commitment or funding, or even some kind a behaviour change. For instance, if you’re speaking to colleagues about your research, one end goal may be to have your colleagues try your new analytic method (or at least make sure they cite you). If you are speaking to a potential donor, you are likely trying to persuade them that your research program will have direct impact on the communities they care about, with the end goal that they fund your research program. Or, if you’re speaking to policymakers, you may be trying to convince them that your findings have relevance to their portfolios, with the end goal of having them, in turn, change or adapt laws and guidelines.
Although we often think about persuasion as being something that feels gross or unethical, like trying to convince someone to pay far too much for a used car that has a litany of issues, it doesn’t have to be that way. When speaking as persuasion works well and with integrity, you are simply inviting others into your world, and asking them to take on your perspective, at least temporarily, in order to better understand who you are and where you come from. You are showing your audience why your work may be relevant for them or the people they care about, and directly specifying the kind of engagement you are hoping for. This kind of persuasion provides for an authentic connection, allows your audience to get to know you and your work on a deeper level, and allows them to decide when and how they engage with you further in a way that is meaningful for both of you.
Speaking as persuasion— knowing what you want your audience to think, feel, and do — is a skill, and it's one that gets sharper with practice and the right guidance. If you have an upcoming talk, donor meeting, or policy conversation and want to make sure it lands, I'd love to help you prepare. Book a discovery call here and we'll work out exactly what your audience needs to hear from you.
Next week: Grant writing as selling a vision
