Paul Ryan shares the same skill that propelled Barack Obama to the White House: public speaking. Whether you love Paul Ryan’s ideas or hate them, there’s no question one skill makes him hard to ignore—he’s an exceptional communicator. As a leader in any field you can have great ideas, but if you cannot sell those ideas persuasively you stand no chance of changing anyone’s mind.
When Mitt Romney chose Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate for the 2012 presidential race, pundits and observers repeatedly referred to Ryan’s communication skills as one of the key reasons he has grabbed the national spotlight with his conservative ideas on fiscal reform. Professor Thomas Hall taught Ryan at Miami University in Ohio. In this interview for The New York Times, Hall credited Ryan’s communication skills as a reason for his success. According to Hall, “He [Ryan] was one of the best students in the class. He was conscientious, and he was especially articulate, both verbally and in writing ability.” Hall said that Ryan’s public speaking skills “stood out from the other students.”
Now you know why Ryan—at the age of 42—has risen so far so fast. He has ideas and can explain those ideas very, very well. Leaders who inspire change are often great communicators. I recall working with a team of middle managers at one of the largest companies in the world. During a break the team’s director pulled me aside, pointed to a man in the front row and quietly whispered, “You see that guy? He’s the smartest one in the room, but he’s not going anywhere.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because nobody understands him. It takes him ten minutes to make a point he should be able to articulate in one minute.”
Communication skills matter.
You might not agree with Ryan’s philosophy on the role of the federal government or his plan to reduce the government debt, but it’s hard to make the argument that he isn’t a clear communicator. In a series of YouTube videos where Ryan explains his “Path to Prosperity” plan, he puts on a master class in presenting statistics. Here are three ways he does it.
Display simple graphics. In Episode 1 of the video series Ryan talks about the growing public debt. He uses very simple graphics to display the information. In one chart he shows the public debt as a share of the U.S. economy. There are only two main numbers on the screen: 70% (public debt as it stands today) and 344% (public debt as a percent of the U.S economy in 2050).
In fact, all of Ryan’s slides are equally as simple and uncluttered. In another slide Ryan talks about government spending. “Next year government will spend sixty-eight cents out of every dollar you pay in taxes on health, retirement programs, and interest on the debt.” Ryan’s graphic displays a very simply pie chart that visually represents how much money is taken out of the pie and how little is left. The slide is animated, wiping out the remaining amount while Ryan says, “By the year 2025, they will consume every penny of every tax dollar you send to Washington.”
Put numbers in perspective. Ryan’s charts are simple and so are his explanations. Ryan knows that numbers in the trillions are simply too big for most people to grasp so he puts statistics in terms anyone can understand. “Look at the growth of government on the current path we are on,” Ryan says. “The government grows to such high levels that by the time my three children are my age, the government will be twice the size for them that it is for me.”
Stick to the rule of three. If you’re a regular reader of my columns, then you know that I’m a big fan of the rule of the three (See Thomas Jefferson, Steve Jobs, and The Rule of 3). The human brain can only consume about three chunks of information in short-term memory (seven is actually the upper limit which is why the phone number has seven digits). Ryan must know this intuitively because his presentations and explanations are often divided into groups of three. Some examples:
Ryan argues the tax code should be “fair, competitive, and simple.”
Ryan says his plan combats “debt, doubt, and decline” by cutting spending, paying off the debt, and getting our economy back on the path to prosperity.
Ryan divides his presentation on Medicare into three segments: What’s going on now, why it’s happening, how we can save it.
I used the term “soft skill” in the title as a reference to public speaking. I did so only because most leaders, unfortunately, do see it as a soft skill. It’s not. Persuasive public speaking and presentation skills are among the most important qualities inspiring leaders share. Ideas are limited to your imagination and will never lead to action if you cannot articulate those ideas effectively.
The fact is that America faces some very serious challenges and opportunities. Both liberals and conservatives have ideas on overcoming those challenges and seizing opportunities. Both sides need effective speakers to get people excited about those ideas. The Republican Party has now elevated Ryan to a more public role to make their case. The debate is on.