VIDEO: A 75 second lesson in communicating a difficult idea.

If you’ve got a difficult idea you need to communicate, here’s one way to do it:

Compare it to something people already understand.

For instance, when I try to tell parents to be careful about how their kids use Facebook, I know that navigating the Internet with kids can seem like an overwhelming idea. Where do you start? How do you know which things matter and which things don’t?

So, I compare Facebook to something simple every parent already agrees on.

I say:

“Posting a photo online is like getting a digital tattoo. Once you post it, it can never be removed. You wouldn’t let your 12-year-old get a tattoo. Why are you letting them post photos on Facebook?”

Digital tattoo = online photo.

I took something complex and compared it to something simple that is so obvious, no one could argue against it. (I’ve yet to meet a parent that says, “You know what, I would let my 12 year old get a tattoo.”)

In this brilliant 75 second commercial, JetBlue does the same exact thing.

Question:
The dream you’re chasing is built on ideas. What’s one idea you could compare your dream to in order to communicate it clearly?