People Forget 90% of What They Learn
Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School, by John Medina, is a fascinating read. It’s full of insights that will benefit anyone who’s interested in speeches and presentations.
Here’s something to ponder:
“[Hermann Ebbinghaus] is most famous for uncovering one of the most depressing facts in all of education: People usually forget 90 percent of what they learn in a class within 30 days. He further showed that the majority of this forgetting occurs within the first few hours after class. This has been robustly confirmed in modern times.” (Page 100)
I suspect you could say with equal validity, “People usually forget 90 percent of what they learn in a presentation within 30 days.”
If it’s true, do you try to make people remember more of what you say? Is it enough if they forget only 80 percent or 70 percent? Or do you change what you’re trying to accomplish in a presentation?
July 15th, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Chris, do you employ any methods to help people remember your presentations within those crucial 30 days? I imagine emails would be a method?
July 15th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Answer — Change what you’re trying to accomplish. The idea that you can “make people remember” anything is a fool’s errand. All you can do is present an unforgettable story.
I’ve pursued many mini-careers, and they all involve storytelling. The biggest lesson I’ve learned about effective communication is, “Tell One Story, with one message, and tell that one story with as much impact as possible (and make the guest/visitor/audience member the star of the story, if possible.)
Great communicators often don’t need a complete sentence to tell the story. Barack Obama = CHANGE. Ronald Reagan = SHINING CITY ON A HILL. Abraham Lincoln = UNION. G.W. Bush (2004) HE KEPT US SAFE.
July 15th, 2009 at 3:34 pm
[...] if it’s true (as I wrote in yesterday’s post) that people forget most of what they learn in a presentation — 90% after 30 days — the [...]
July 15th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Shariq: Thanks for mentioning follow-up emails. (I included your suggestion in my most recent post.) Yes, I follow up with emails. And with notes and with calls and with as many ways as I can think.
DrProcter: Yes, yes, yes. The question I have for you: how do you define STORY. Your examples from various presidents — change, shining city, union, etc. — don’t fit the traditional definition, although they do exemplify how people talk about story these days. As in, every presentation has to tell a story. Do you have a brief definition of how you’re using the word story?
Thanks, Chris
July 23rd, 2009 at 7:51 pm
I am just discovering your site/blogs/coments. Very interesting, insightful and fun. I have subscribed and hope to contribute more in the future.
November 6th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
hello, I didn’t know where to contact you but your web design was off on opera and internet explorer. Anyways, i just suscribd to your rss.
April 20th, 2011 at 4:01 am
[quote]All you can do is present an unforgettable story. [unquote]
Recalling one of my english class teacher (I’m Greek so English was learnt as a foreign language) I must say this is so true! I still remember our teacher closing with force the door behind him and us shaking in his trying to illustrate the meaning of “slam the door”! Or then again our history teacher drawing various objects on the blackboard to support his storytelling.
I just wish more of these people exist!
April 20th, 2011 at 6:13 pm
Lisa,
Isn’t it amazing how some lessons stay with us years later because of how they were presented?
Thanks for your insights.