#172: Simply Put: Why Clear Messages Win… and How To Design Them w/ Ben Guttmann

Key Takeaways:

[1:26] – Introducing Ben
[4:27] – Ben talks about his relationship with a college professor that changed his life
[6:51] – Why being a “Happy Warrior” is important to Ben
[11:49] – What Neil Gaiman said in his commencement speech that resonated with Ben
[13:46] – Why Ben started flossing
[15:12] – What’s the problem with writing a book about simplicity?
[18:09] – The correlation between simplicity and fluency and how it affects communication
[23:51] – Figuring out benefits instead of features
[33:00] - How to distill a message into a valuable gift to the audience
[41:46] – The power of constraints to craft salient messages
[45:00] – Ben’s take on ChatGPT to assist with book writing
[48:21] – What is the desire line or desire path?
[54:00] – What it means to be an enlightened idiot

Resources:
Books:
Simply Put: Why Clear Messages Win―and How to Design Them by Ben Guttmann: https://www.amazon.com/Simply-Put-Messages-Win_and-Design/dp/1523004681
Thing Explainer: Complicated Stuff in Simple Words by Randall Munroe: https://www.amazon.com/Thing-Explainer-Complicated-Stuff-Simple/dp/0544668251
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini: https://www.amazon.com/Influence-Psychology-Persuasion-Robert-Cialdini/dp/006124189X

Videos:
Neil Gaiman’s Inspirational Commencement Speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikAb-NYkseI

Socials:
Website: https://www.benguttmann.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benguttmann/