What Stalin and Diefenbaker Agreed On

One would not normally quote Joseph Stalin and John Diefenbaker in the same breath to make the same argument, but let’s do just that.

Stalin’s (purported) words were to the point and need little analysis: “When one man dies, that’s a tragedy. When a million men die, that’s a statistic.”

Dief the Chief, however, needs a bit of setting. Late in his career he had taken the brilliant political rising star Sean O’Sullivan under his wing. One day when O’Sullivan was preparing a speech to rip into the government about multi-million dollar waste, the Chief counseled him to slow down and think about impact. “Sean,” he said, “nobody understands what a hundred million dollars looks like. But everybody understands a hundred dollars for the Prime Minister’s lunch.”

Dief and Stalin were both teaching us the same communications lesson: very large numbers don’t impact people the way a single personal-scale thing will. When we read of fifty thousand dying of starvation in some far-off place, we make a quick, unemotional mental note and move on to the next story. But if it’s the neighbours’ kids, that’s different. Similarly, a government boondoggle of ten billion dollars just seems like something “out there”, unrelated to our little lives. But the Army spending the same for one bullet that you would pay for a whole box at Canadian Tire, well, that’s just absurd. What idiots!

The great teachers have always been about small, relatable things. St. Patrick held up a shamrock and used it to explain the rather complicated doctrine of the Trinity. Jesus himself, encouraging his followers to have faith, put a tiny mustard seed between his fingertips and said, “Look! This tiny, insignificant little seed will grow into a huge plant!”

We call them parables, adages, maxims – simple, pithy little stories which pack an entire lesson. They change minds, convince audiences, and impact the world in ways pages of facts and numbers never can.

That said, sometimes pages of statistics or boxes of evidence are required by the process, but even then the packaging remains paramount. Imagine a jury coming into the courtroom and seeing a dozen bankers’ boxes in one corner. Just part of the scenery.

But imagine, if you will, twelve law students in parade, each carrying a heavy box, setting them one by one in a noticeably growing pile next to the counsel table. The jury will be amused, of course, and every one of them will go home and regale the family with the tale. The pile of boxes will take on mythical proportions.

In the same vein, consider executive summaries. If one is to have impact, it needs not only to be a genuine précis of the entire document, but also to be carefully and thoughtfully packaged for its emotional impact.

The KISS principle is true, but only half the story. Keep it simple, yes, but also maximize the emotional impact. Great communicators know that it is the heart, not the ears, which listens best.