# Storytelling, communication, and influence techniques

> Synthesized from Lenny Rachitsky's newsletter and podcast archive (30+ sources).
> Use as a reference before stakeholder conversations, presentations, and written communications.

---

## Part 1: Storytelling

### 1.1 Stories beat data

Pure stories outperform data, and data-plus-stories, in memorability and persuasion. "Generation after generation, what people pass on are stories, not numbers, not stats." Our brains are not designed to remember pie charts or statistics detached from imagery. If you don't speak in story, you will be forgotten.

*Source: Ebi Atawodi (YouTube/Netflix/Uber) on Lenny's Podcast*

### 1.2 Every story is a moment of transformation

A story is not about a topic or a theme. It's about a specific moment where someone went from believing one thing to believing another. Find the turning point — that's your story.

**Homework for Life exercise**: Every night, write down the single most storyworthy moment from that day in one sentence. Over months this builds a catalog of personal moments to draw from in any context.

*Source: Matthew Dicks, 59x Moth Slam winner, author of Storyworthy*

### 1.3 Start in the middle of the action

Never open with:
- A question to the audience
- A date or timeline
- A thesis statement or agenda
- Your credentials

Instead, drop the listener into the scene. "Every pitch should start in the middle of the action." If you and a friend were at dinner and they asked how your day was, you wouldn't start with a thesis statement.

*Sources: Matthew Dicks; Merci Grace (ex-Head of Growth, Slack)*

### 1.4 The audience is the hero, not you

The presenter is the mentor (Yoda), not the hero (Luke). When you flip this, everything changes: you stop talking about your capabilities and start talking about the listener's transformation.

*Source: Nancy Duarte, author of Resonate*

### 1.5 Alternate between "what is" and "what could be"

Great presentations build tension and release it by moving between the current state and the possible future, back and forth. This mirrors the rise-and-fall structure of storytelling that has worked for tens of thousands of years. FMRI research shows that when a story is told well, the speaker's and listener's brains fire in the exact same order, in the exact same place.

*Source: Nancy Duarte*

### 1.6 The strategic narrative framework

Don't build a pitch around your product. Build one story that drives everything — marketing, sales, product roadmap, fundraising, recruiting.

**Structure:**
1. Name a shift in the world (not your product)
2. Show there will be winners and losers
3. Tease the "promised land" (the future for winners)
4. Introduce your capabilities as "magic gifts" that help them get there
5. Present evidence of others who've already arrived

The key: the listener becomes the main character. You're spelling out a shift in THEIR world, not talking about yourself.

*Source: Andy Raskin, strategic narrative consultant*

### 1.7 The distillation + action test

Two dimensions that separate good storytelling from great:

1. **Distillation** — Can you compress a mess of ideas, opinions, and problems into a single memorable "meme" that the organization can carry? When stakeholders walk away, what one-liner do they repeat?
2. **Action** — Does your story compel someone to DO something? A story that doesn't drive action is an anecdote.

*Source: Yuhki Yamashita, CPO of Figma*

### 1.8 Don't delegate the storytelling

"The story is not a marketing exercise after you built the product. The story is WHY you build the product." Tell it directly to the teams building it — zero packet loss between you and the frontline.

*Source: Jeetu Patel, Cisco EVP*

### 1.9 The effort is invisible

People underestimate how much time great storytellers invest. Rule of thumb: to explain what your team is doing for the next 3-4 months, expect two weeks of focused work (1-2 hours/day) to craft the story, consider different audiences and framings, and practice delivery. Remove jargon and abbreviations — that alone takes significant effort.

*Source: Petra Wille, author of Strong Product People*

### 1.10 Be entertaining first

"No matter what you're doing — teaching a fifth grader, presenting a product, delivering an all-hands — the first and most important thing is to be entertaining. If you're not entertaining, people will not listen to you."

*Source: Matthew Dicks*

---

## Part 2: Communication

### 2.1 Writing as the highest-leverage skill

"In an increasingly remote world, you've got to be able to articulate yourself. You owe your team, your peers, your stakeholders that level of clarity." Writing forces you to understand what you're actually saying. It's a thinking tool, not just a communication tool. Even if you never share what you write, the process sharpens your thinking.

Being a really good writer "is the highest leverage usage of your time. It's the antidote to spending most of your day in meetings."

*Sources: Brandon Chu (VP Product, Shopify); Noah Weiss (Slack)*

### 2.2 Cut the preamble

Most people need less context-setting than you think. Get to the meat of your argument fast. After drafting, go back and cut the preamble — you'll almost always find the real start is several paragraphs in.

*Source: Wes Kao, communication coach*

### 2.3 The spiky point of view

Don't spend time restating what everyone already knows ("communication is important for PMs"). Jump to the specific, counterintuitive insight that only someone with your experience would know. The test: could anyone with Google access write this? If yes, it's not spiky enough.

*Source: Wes Kao*

### 2.4 Start with chapter one when talking to executives

"Whatever you're working on, you're basically writing and telling a story. When you talk to an exec, start with chapter one: what part of the company strategy are you working on? What metrics are you trying to improve? What assumptions are guiding what you're building?"

Non-executives often start on chapter six. Even if that part of the story is correct, you haven't earned the right to tell it yet.

*Source: Casey Winters, CPO of Eventbrite*

### 2.5 Executive communication is executives (plural) communication

You're not presenting to "leadership." You're communicating with individual humans who each have different styles, concerns, and hot buttons. Before a review:

1. Role-play the conversation with someone who knows each exec's patterns
2. Keep a running notes doc of what each exec asks and the feedback they give across meetings
3. Anticipate their specific concerns — don't prepare generic talking points

*Sources: Casey Winters; Jules Walter (YouTube/Gemini)*

### 2.6 Assume people don't care

"You should assume that people don't care. When you start with that assumption, you force yourself to be sharper in your communication style." This applies to internal presentations, customer-facing writing, and blog posts equally.

*Source: Lane Shackleton, CPO of Coda*

### 2.7 Communication IS the job

"If you want to be part of a lasting change, it is down to communication." People who say "I wrote that up a year ago" missed the point — if the writing didn't create change, the writing failed. "Org charts are communication devices. Silence is communication. Not reaching out to check on someone's project is communication."

*Source: Andrew 'Boz' Bosworth, CTO of Meta*

### 2.8 Spontaneous speaking: What? So what? Now what?

The vast majority of communication is spontaneous (Q&A, feedback, hallway conversations), not planned presentations. When your mind goes blank, use this structure:

1. **What?** — State the point
2. **So what?** — Explain why it matters
3. **Now what?** — Give the next step

Set up communication situations as conversations, not monologues. People feel more comfortable in dialogue.

*Source: Matt Abrahams, Stanford professor, author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter*

### 2.9 Managing speaking anxiety

**The DARE framework:**
- **D**on't try to be perfect — aim for "good enough"
- **A**pproach anxiety as excitement (reframe the physical sensation)
- **R**eframe the situation as a conversation, not a performance
- **E**xercise before speaking to burn off adrenaline

*Source: Matt Abrahams*

### 2.10 Conviction equals executive presence

"Somebody who you feel has great gravitas usually has something about them that says 'this person really believes in what they're saying.'" You can fast-track conviction through practice: speak on random topics with no preparation, focusing on maintaining strong delivery regardless of content. The skill transfers to real presentations.

*Source: Tristan de Montebello, co-creator of Ultraspeaking*

### 2.11 Isolate sub-skills instead of "just give more talks"

Don't practice public speaking by giving more talks. That's too broad. Instead, isolate specific sub-skills through targeted drills:
- Conviction (speak with authority on random topics)
- Conciseness (make a point in 30 seconds)
- Transitions (pivot smoothly between ideas)
- Recovery (lose your place and find your way back)

*Source: Tristan de Montebello*

### 2.12 Scale your writing feedback with AI

Build a custom GPT (or prompt template) that distills your most common writing feedback, so your team can get real-time editing guidance without waiting for your review. This doesn't replace personalized coaching but scales the 80% of feedback that's repeatable.

*Source: Hilary Gridley, Head of Product at Whoop*

### 2.13 Stop minimizing yourself

Eliminate language that shrinks your power:

| Instead of... | Say... |
|---|---|
| "Sorry to bother you" | "Do you have a minute?" |
| "Sorry, I messed up" | "I'll fix that now" |
| "I just think that..." | "I think that..." |
| "I actually have an idea" | "I have an idea" |
| "Quick question" | "I have a question" |

"Just" demeans what you have to say. "Actually" signals surprise that you have something to contribute. "Quickly" assumes you're imposing. Within a week of dropping these, one engineer's team commented that she presented more compelling ideas and showed up stronger.

*Source: Shivani Berry, CEO of Arise Leadership*

---

## Part 3: Influence

### 3.1 Make their goals your goals

Before asking someone to do something, take 10 seconds to reflect on what THEY want. Frame every ask around their motivations, incentives, and what's important to them right now. Show how your request will:

1. Help them hit their goals
2. Help them move faster
3. Help the company move its north-star metric
4. Make customers happier
5. Help them personally (e.g. in performance reviews)

Real example: At Airbnb, the pitch for adding a Superhost badge to search results failed when framed as "this increases host retention" (the requesting team's goal). It succeeded when reframed as "this will increase guest-side conversion" (the search team's goal).

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.2 Charge your trust battery

Trust is a gradient, not a binary. Think of it as a battery you charge over time.

**Charge it by:**
1. Do what you say you will
2. Listen — make the person feel heard
3. Help people out without being asked
4. Help people reach their personal goals
5. Point out others' contributions and achievements
6. Make time to talk when you don't need anything
7. Take people's feedback into account
8. Assume good intentions

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky, citing Tobi Lütke (CEO of Shopify)*

### 3.3 Help them see what you see

"With people, slow is fast and fast is slow." (Stephen Covey) Rush people into a quick decision and they'll either change their mind or it'll blow up later. Instead:

1. Loop colleagues in early
2. Spend time explaining the why
3. Invite them to kickoffs
4. Ask them to lay out concrete objections and address them
5. Communicate as your thinking evolves
6. Give people a chance to give input
7. Paint a compelling vision of what could be

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.4 Show success to earn influence

If you've been right before — hit goals, shipped great products, made the right calls — people are more likely to trust your suggestions next time. The more you succeed, the more influence follows. Amazon codified this: "Leaders are right, a lot."

**Ways to show success:**
1. Hit goals consistently
2. Ship products seen as successful
3. Make the right decisions consistently
4. Make commitments and deliver
5. Highlight your team's wins

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.5 Bring evidence in priority order

When you can't influence through trust alone, bring evidence:

1. **Hard data** (strongest)
2. **Synthesized user research findings**
3. **One-off anecdotes**
4. **Competitive analysis**
5. **Similar examples of this working elsewhere** (weakest)

Key question to ask the other person: "What evidence would convince you of this being the right decision?"

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.6 Leverage authority (sparingly)

Gain the support of influential people or refer to trusted credentials. Credibility trickles down. But the more you rely on authority, the more your own voice fades. Keep this in your back pocket for when you really need it.

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.7 Be likable

"The more you like someone, the more you'll be persuaded by them." (Robert Cialdini) Your job isn't to be liked — it's to drive impact. But people who are liked get things done more easily. Smile, say hello, ask about people's lives, give compliments, recognize success publicly, criticize privately.

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky*

### 3.8 Seek intel on how each stakeholder makes decisions

Before trying to influence anyone, understand how they operate. Set up 1:1s and ask:

1. "What are the top goals and OKRs of your team?"
2. "What projects do you think will contribute most to these goals?"
3. "What's your process for deciding what to take on each quarter?"
4. "Who are the key decision-makers? What do they each care about?"
5. "What concerns do you anticipate them having about my project?"
6. "How might I frame my project to increase their support?"

Establish rapport first. Convey you're seeking information, not arguing. Start with: "This is an informal chat. I'd like to understand your world and get your advice."

Keep a running notes doc on each executive's patterns — questions they ask, feedback they give, things they care about.

*Source: Jules Walter (YouTube/Slack/Gemini)*

### 3.9 Frame your message from their POV

"Negotiation is the art of letting the other side have your way." (Chris Voss)

Reframe proposals from the stakeholder's perspective rather than yours. At Slack, a monetization proposal was reframed from "this will increase revenue" (the team's goal) to "this helps users discover Slack's full value from the start" (the CEO's user-centric POV). The CEO approved it. The result: a 20% increase in paying teams.

*Source: Jules Walter*

### 3.10 The meeting before the meeting

Never walk into a decision meeting hoping it goes well. Do the pre-work:

**With detractors:**
- Meet beforehand to understand and address concerns
- Steelman their argument (identify the strongest version of it)
- Prepare a rebuttal

**With champions:**
- Confirm their support and surface any lingering concerns
- Ask them to chime in during the meeting or pre-brief key decision-makers

"Don't go into important decision meetings not knowing how key stakeholders will feel. Meetings should be low-drama and full of non-surprises."

*Sources: Jules Walter; Lenny Rachitsky (from jury duty analogy)*

### 3.11 Make people feel heard

People won't listen to you until they feel you've heard THEM. When people feel dismissed, they go into a stress response (fight/flight/freeze) and become defensive. They also won't let you influence them if they feel you won't let them influence you. People want reciprocity.

**Technique — play back their statements:**
- "So what I'm hearing is [their concern]. Is that right?"
- "It sounds like [their priority] is what matters most here."
- "I want to make sure I understand your concern. You're worried about [X]?"

**Secure progressive alignment** — don't wait until the end of the meeting to check for agreement. Confirm sub-points throughout: "So it sounds like we're aligned on [X]. The open question is [Y]. Is that right?"

*Source: Jules Walter*

### 3.12 Manage the clock

State a concrete desired outcome at the start: "Our goal today is to get approval on [X]." This gives you legitimacy to redirect tangents later.

Use straightforward language (as if talking to a teenager with no context). Redirect tangents with: "Thanks for bringing this up. Let's take that offline since we only have 5 minutes left and need to resolve [the decision]."

Adapt format to the exec. Some hate slides (go with a memo). Some want to read first (silent reading then discussion). Some process fast and want debate time. Know your audience.

*Source: Jules Walter*

### 3.13 Influence is not politics

"Politics is manipulating outcomes for your own gain. Influence is increasing the odds that your good ideas survive." Treat stakeholder conversations as discovery interviews — learn what they believe, strengthen your ideas based on their input, approach with low ego and genuine curiosity.

*Source: Jessica Fain (Webflow, ex-Slack)*

### 3.14 Build trust through casual time

If you're always pitching ideas, you erode trust. Spend time in conversations where you're NOT asking for anything. "That is the groundwork for the pitch down the line. People devalue that time upfront, because it pays dividends for the later pitch."

*Source: Jessica Fain*

### 3.15 When you lack trust, start with what they believe

If you're new or unproven, don't pitch something wildly different from what the exec already believes. Pick from your other good ideas that are more aligned with their existing convictions. Build credibility with small wins first.

*Source: Jessica Fain*

### 3.16 Reduce risk to build momentum

Instead of proposing a year-long initiative, propose a two-week proof of concept. Show success, then expand. "It's much easier to bite off on something that's going to take two weeks."

This gives stakeholders confidence with minimal downside and builds the trust capital for bigger asks later.

*Source: Jessica Fain*

### 3.17 Co-create instead of presenting

Don't arrive with a fully baked plan. Bring a straw-man proposal and iterate with stakeholders. "Your goal isn't to come up with the best idea; it's to execute on the best idea."

Three strategies:
1. **Start early** — Once you have a rough proposal, bring together affected people for a brainstorm. You'll stop hearing "I wish you'd looped us in earlier."
2. **Show your work while you work** — Share updates along the way (user interview results in Slack, learnings in casual conversations).
3. **Be curious** — When someone pushes back, ask "What am I missing?" and "How can we make this stronger?" instead of defending.

*Source: Shivani Berry*

### 3.18 The sales pitch structure (for product pitches too)

Your real competition isn't other options — it's "no decision." 40-60% of B2B decisions end in "no decision" because the buyer can't figure out how to confidently choose.

**Two-part structure:**

**Part 1 — The Setup (a few minutes):**
1. **Insight** — What does the listener need to know to understand why your solution matters? (Not "here's a problem" — any competitor can claim to solve problems. This is YOUR unique point of view.)
2. **Alternative approaches** — Lay out 2-3 ways to tackle this, with honest pros and cons of each. You're teaching them the landscape, not pushing your product.
3. **The perfect world** — "Given those trade-offs, what would a perfect solution look like?" If they agree with your description, the pitch is yours. If they don't agree, disqualify — you have nothing to sell them.

**Part 2 — The Follow-through:**
4. **Differentiated value** — Show how you deliver the "perfect world," with proof (demos, case studies, metrics).

The setup should be a conversation, not a monologue. At each step: "Does this resonate with you?"

*Source: April Dunford, author of Sales Pitch and Obviously Awesome*

### 3.19 The three speeds of influence

1. **Slow** — Let them discover the problem through failure. Can take months or years. ("The world will create enough failure that adaptation will occur.")
2. **Moderate** — Teach them something new. When they live with this knowledge, their behavior changes. This is the Challenger Sale approach.
3. **Fast** — Direct intervention. Tell them what needs to happen. Requires a healthy relationship and trust.

Match your speed to the situation: how urgent is the decision, how strong is the relationship, and how receptive is the person?

Important: "Trying to exert influence through a dysfunctional relationship is not going to go great." Fix the relationship first.

*Source: Evan LaPointe, founder of CORE Sciences*

### 3.20 The PM as full-stack influencer

"We are in the business of influence. Users are doing something and we want them to do something else. Engineers are doing something and we want them to build something fast. Leadership has plans and we influence them to sign off."

Think of yourself as influencing in ALL directions — users, engineers, execs, peers, customers — not just "managing up."

*Source: Anuj Rathi (Swiggy/Flipkart)*

### 3.21 Build trust through demonstrated competence

"Trust is based on competence and character." In most corporate environments, competence wins. If you demonstrate deep knowledge of the customer, the data, the industry, and the product, people will trust you to make decisions.

The fastest way to accelerate trust: ask the other person to teach you something they know. "If I wanted to accelerate trust with Lenny, I will ask Lenny to teach me something." Making someone accountable for your learning creates investment in your success.

*Source: Christian Idiodi, SVPG*

### 3.22 Hunt for misalignment

One of the highest-leverage activities a PM can do: endlessly hunt for misalignment and push everyone back into alignment. Root out misalignment between designers and engineers, researchers and PMs, executives and the team.

**How to build this habit:**
1. Listen carefully in standups for anything that sounds like misalignment
2. Ask questions when you sense a disconnect
3. Create a brief one-pager that crystallizes goals, problems, assumptions, and decisions
4. Revisit priorities and assumptions regularly in 1:1s

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky (from jury duty analogy)*

---

## Part 4: Key books and resources

| Resource | Author | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| *Storyworthy* | Matthew Dicks | Personal storytelling craft |
| *Resonate* | Nancy Duarte | Presentation design |
| *Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion* | Robert Cialdini | Psychology of influence |
| *How to Win Friends and Influence People* | Dale Carnegie | Relationship building |
| *Never Split the Difference* | Chris Voss | Negotiation |
| *Sales Pitch* | April Dunford | Narrative sales structure |
| *Obviously Awesome* | April Dunford | Product positioning |
| *The Challenger Sale* | Dixon & Adamson | Teaching-based selling |
| *The JOLT Effect* | Dixon & McKenna | Overcoming buyer indecision |
| *Think Faster, Talk Smarter* | Matt Abrahams | Spontaneous communication |
| *Several Short Sentences About Writing* | Verlyn Klinkenborg | Writing craft |
| *The Minto Pyramid Principle* | Barbara Minto | Executive communication |
| *The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People* | Stephen Covey | Leadership fundamentals |
| *Great at Work* | Morten T. Hansen | High-performer habits |

---

## Quick-reference checklists

### Before a presentation
- [ ] Who is the hero of this story? (Hint: not you)
- [ ] What is the single moment of transformation?
- [ ] Does it start in the middle of the action?
- [ ] Have I cut the preamble?
- [ ] Can the audience carry away a one-line "meme"?
- [ ] Does it compel a specific action?
- [ ] Have I removed jargon and abbreviations?

### Before a stakeholder conversation
- [ ] What are THEIR goals?
- [ ] How does my ask help them hit those goals?
- [ ] What evidence do I have? (data > research > anecdotes)
- [ ] Have I done the "meeting before the meeting"?
- [ ] Am I prepared to make them feel heard (play back their concerns)?
- [ ] Do I have a concrete desired outcome for this conversation?
- [ ] Am I managing the clock?

### Before a written communication
- [ ] Could I cut the first paragraph entirely?
- [ ] Am I starting with the conclusion, not the backstory?
- [ ] Am I starting with chapter one (company strategy context)?
- [ ] Is my point of view "spiky" — or could anyone with Google write this?
- [ ] Have I assumed the reader doesn't care and written accordingly?
- [ ] Have I eliminated qualifiers (just, actually, quickly)?

---

*Source: Lenny Rachitsky's Newsletter and Podcast archive, 2020-2026. Compiled March 2026.*

---
name: storytelling-influence
description: >-
  Coach users on storytelling, communication, and influence using 45 practitioner-tested
  techniques from Lenny Rachitsky's archive. Use when drafting presentations, preparing
  for stakeholder conversations, writing executive communications, pitching ideas,
  seeking buy-in, or improving persuasion. Triggers on "how should I present this",
  "help me pitch", "get buy-in", "convince", "influence", "stakeholder prep",
  "improve my writing", "presentation feedback", "storytelling", "executive presence",
  "meeting prep", or any request to make a communication more compelling.
---

# Storytelling, communication, and influence coach

Apply the techniques in [reference.md](reference.md) to improve the user's storytelling,
communication, and influence. The reference contains 45 techniques organized into three
domains, each with named sources. Use them as a coaching toolkit, not a checklist to
recite.

## How to use this skill

### Mode 1: Review and improve a draft

When the user shares a draft (presentation, email, Slack message, document, pitch):

1. Identify the 2-3 most impactful techniques from the reference that apply
2. Diagnose the specific gap (not generic praise)
3. Rewrite the weak sections applying the techniques, citing which one you used
4. Run the relevant checklist from the reference against the final version

**Storytelling gaps to check:**
- Is the audience positioned as the hero, or is the author?
- Does it open in the middle of the action, or with preamble?
- Is there a single memorable "meme" the reader walks away with?
- Does it compel a specific action?

**Communication gaps to check:**
- Could the first paragraph be cut entirely?
- Is the point of view "spiky" — or could anyone write this?
- Does it start with chapter one (strategy context) for execs?
- Are there minimizing qualifiers (just, actually, quickly, sorry)?

**Influence gaps to check:**
- Is the ask framed around THEIR goals, not yours?
- Is there evidence in priority order (data > research > anecdotes)?
- Has the "meeting before the meeting" been done?
- Is there a concrete desired outcome stated?

### Mode 2: Prep for a stakeholder conversation

When the user is preparing for a meeting, pitch, or difficult conversation:

1. Ask who the audience is and what decision they need
2. Pull the relevant influence techniques from the reference:
   - Stakeholder intel gathering (3.8)
   - Frame from their POV (3.9)
   - Meeting before the meeting (3.10)
   - Make people feel heard (3.11)
   - Manage the clock (3.12)
3. Help the user build a prep sheet:
   - Each stakeholder's goals and concerns
   - How the ask maps to their goals
   - Anticipated objections and rebuttals
   - Champions to activate
   - Concrete desired outcome + time allocation
4. If relevant, apply the sales pitch structure (3.18): insight → alternatives → perfect world → differentiated value

### Mode 3: Teach a specific technique

When the user asks about a specific topic (e.g. "how do I get better at executive presence"):

1. Pull the 2-4 most relevant techniques from the reference
2. Explain them concisely with the source attribution
3. Give a concrete example applied to the user's context (their role, their stakeholders, their industry)
4. Suggest a practice exercise if applicable

### Mode 4: Build a narrative or pitch from scratch

When the user needs to construct a new presentation, strategy pitch, or narrative:

1. Start with the strategic narrative framework (1.6):
   - Name the shift in the world
   - Show winners and losers
   - Tease the promised land
   - Position capabilities as magic gifts
   - Provide evidence
2. Apply the distillation test (1.7): what's the one-line meme?
3. Apply the action test (1.7): what specific action does this compel?
4. Structure the presentation using "what is" vs "what could be" alternation (1.5)
5. Cut the preamble ruthlessly (2.2)

## Principles for coaching

- **Be specific, not generic.** "This opening is weak" is useless. "You're starting on chapter six — the exec needs chapter one first (which part of the company strategy this connects to)" is useful.
- **Cite the technique by name and number** so the user can look it up in the reference for deeper context.
- **Prioritize.** Don't list 15 things to fix. Name the 2-3 changes that would have the most impact.
- **Show, don't tell.** Rewrite the weak section rather than just describing what's wrong.
- **Match the user's context.** These techniques come from tech PMs, but adapt the examples to the user's actual situation and industry.

## Quick-reference checklists

### Before a presentation
- [ ] Who is the hero? (Not you — the audience)
- [ ] What's the moment of transformation?
- [ ] Does it start in the action, not with preamble?
- [ ] Can the audience carry away a one-line meme?
- [ ] Does it compel a specific action?
- [ ] Have I removed jargon?

### Before a stakeholder conversation
- [ ] What are THEIR goals?
- [ ] How does my ask help them?
- [ ] What evidence do I have? (data > research > anecdotes)
- [ ] Have I done the meeting before the meeting?
- [ ] Am I prepared to play back their concerns?
- [ ] Do I have a concrete desired outcome?

### Before a written communication
- [ ] Could I cut the first paragraph?
- [ ] Am I starting with the conclusion?
- [ ] Is my POV spiky?
- [ ] Have I assumed the reader doesn't care?
- [ ] Have I cut qualifiers (just, actually, quickly)?

## Full technique reference

For the complete 45 techniques with sources and examples, see [reference.md](reference.md).

For the original source material (newsletter articles and podcast transcripts) these techniques were synthesized from, see `resources/communication-leadership/` at the repo root.