The power of "Maria"

You see a pain in society over and over again, it has been there for a long time and bugs you. Then suddenly (and tired of waiting for a solution), you come up with a solution, realizing what a great idea it is and may be in front of a great business opportunity. The challenge here is for others to see what you see, to understand what you understand and your idea to stick.

That was my case, even if it wasn’t something totally new in the world and people understand it, still you need to transmit your message clearly. How should I do it? From reading “Made to Stick” by Chip and Dan Heath, feedback from other people and teachers, workshops and real life analogies, I realized that examples and making people imagine in their heads a clear picture, is the best way to transmit the message.

Enter Maria, she is a character I created to explain a business idea we had with a friend. I gave Maria a background, that is very close to some stereotypes at the cultural level. There was a story and used real life activities to show how the service that we came up with will be used. Although some people already heard about some services and trends, still having a story it makes it entertaining and easy to follow up.

The interesting thing is that I underestimated the power of “Maria”, because somebody that read that paper, (it can be said that) was excited about the idea that he believed Maria was a real person, asking to meet Maria. I didn’t realized how powerful “this style” is, or maybe it just was a specific reaction in that case, but “Maria” was brought to life and with excitement, thanks to a reader. Still it’s important to consider how to express your ideas, the mental picture you form and how people fill the gaps.

When filling gaps try to give enough pieces of the puzzle for people to finish it. (Source)

By providing enough pieces to your audience or readers, you are able to enhance their experience since they become active thinkers. When people are shifted from a passive mode (reader or listener) to a thinker, they more likely remember it. Also if people remember the image you provide them and help in filling the gaps to fill the image, make it their own and then they can pass to others.

So, next time you are writing about something or presenting, think about your “Maria” or “Juan”, instead of crunching stats, technical diagrams and packing everything in eloquent language. Make it simple and delight your audience and readers.