Have you ever talked to someone who is incredibly smart, but the moment they start explaining what they do, you feel like you’ve accidentally walked into a foreign language class? Engineers and technically minded people can sometimes speak in terms and acronyms that completely lose the rest of us. Their ideas are brilliant — but the delivery can make our brains stall out.
The other day, I met a group of very bright engineers who were explaining the technology they developed for incredibly precise measurements — measurements made in nanometers.
They told me a nanometer is:0.000000001And they said it casually… as if that meant something to the rest of us.
Honestly, I was lost.
But then one of them said something that made everything suddenly click:
A nanometer is to a meter as the thickness of a welcome mat is to the height of the Empire State Building.
Now we’re talking. I can see that. I can feel the difference. I understand it.
That’s the power of analogies. Analogies take something complex and attach it to something familiar. When we compare a new idea to something people already know, we make the unfamiliar… understandable.
And this isn’t just helpful for engineers — it’s essential for everyone:
Leaders explaining strategy
Teachers explaining concepts
Parents explaining life lessons
Professionals explaining their work
If the other person looks confused, it doesn’t mean they’re not capable — it means the explanation isn’t connected yet.
So the next time someone gives you a blank stare when you're describing something you know well — don’t push harder, simplify smarter.Use an analogy. Paint a picture. Make it familiar.
Because understanding doesn’t happen when people hear you —it happens when they get you.