Our knowledge has “cursed” us.  And it becomes difficult for us to share our knowledge with others, because we can’t readily re-create our listeners’ state of mind.
Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Made to Stick:  Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

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I assume that I understand what you have told me.  That may be (it may likely be) a faulty assumption.

I assume that you understand what I have told you.  That may be (it may likely be) a faulty assumption.

Recently, I realized that someone made assumptions about my work that were not accurate.  And, this is my fault.  It is my job to make things clear.  If someone assumes incorrectly, (and, someone will!), I need to discern that, and correct that.

I suspect that you have the same problem that I do…

In Made to Stick, the Heath brothers describe the “tapping exercise.  It goes like this.  The “tapper” taps out a well-known song.  The audience has to name that tune.  The audience members are seldom able to name that tune.  What is clear in the “tapper’s” head is nothing but empty sounds in the heads of the audience members.

(I most recently tried this with “You ain’t nothing but a hound dog” for a group.  No one – not one! – was able to name that tune).

So…  let’s think about “assumptions.”  If you have something to communicate, there is a pretty good chance that you assume a level of knowledge and understanding in your audience members that they do not actually have.  Especially if there is a “new” member in the group, and new faces in the crowd.  They don’t all know what you assume that they know.

So, rule #1 – as a “sender” of a message, assume that your audience does not know! what you know. 

Now, here’s a way to think about this in a communication context.  Say you want to use an initialism (Grammar Girl calls these “initialisms” instead of acronyms or acrostics. – I just learned something new).  Here’s her definition:

Initialisms
Initialisms are another type of abbreviation. They are often confused with acronyms because they are made up of letters, so they look similar, but they can’t be pronounced as words. FBI and CIA are examples of initialisms because they’re made up of the first letters of Federal Bureau of Investigation and Central Intelligence Agency, respectively, but they can’t be pronounced as words. NASA, on the other hand, is an acronym because even though it is also made up of the first letters of the department name (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), it is pronounced as a word, NASA, and not by spelling out the letters N, A, S, A.

Say you are going to speak using an initialism in a presentation.  The first time you say it in the presentation, say it, then define it, then say it again.  For subsequent times, just the initials are fine.  Like this:

Last week, the CIA – that’s the Central Intelligence Agency, the chief intelligence gathering agency for the United States – last week the CIA released its finding…

Delivery suggestion:  pause well, and set apart the definition of the initialism with clear gestures…

But, here’s the key.  NEVER! assume that your audience already knows the meaning.  Assume that your audience does.not.know what you know.  Thus, spell it out!

Now, rule #2 – as a “receiver” of messages, never assume that you understand, that you have grasped the meaning of the communicator/messenger/speaker/writer/presenter. 

Confirm that you understand.  Learn to practice active listening, in which you “feedback” what you received, to assure clarity of understanding.

And, when you are giving a presentation, it might be a good idea to state, up front, your assumptions to your audience.  In a clear, simple, direct statement.  “I assume that you know…that you intend…that you will…”  The clearer the better.

We all make assumptions.  Sometimes our assumptions can do us in.  State your assumptions clearly.  And confirm, and then reconfirm understanding.

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Bonus observation:  also, never assume that that other person actually listened during your entire presentation, or actually carefully read your e-mail.  Have you ever let your mind wander during someone’s presentation?  Have you ever not read an e-mail as closely as you should have?  I rest my case…