[thelist] RE: How to Talk Down to the Client

[Sarah Sweeney]

> If you only know how to describe it in highly
> technical language, then you're stupid, and don't
> actually know it like you assume you do.

There are many different kinds of intelligence - just because someone 
understands a highly technical concept does not mean that they are able 
to translate that understanding into non-technical language. This is why 
some people make good teachers and some don't.

> No matter how smart you supposedly are, when you hear
> a technical thing described in simple analogies and
> down home illustrations ("a web server is like a
> ...."), you can be amazed at how you now understand it
> a little better.

To prevent the need to reinvent the wheel when coming up with relevant 
analogies, my question is: can anyone point us to articles out there on 
the web that effectively explain the basic concepts of our profession, 
so that we could use these analogies when communicating with clients? 
Such a reference could be hugely valuable to many (or all) of us, I'm sure.

-- 
Sarah Sweeney  ::  Web Developer & Programmer
Portfolio  ::  http://sarah.designshift.com
Blog  ::  http://hardedge.ca