The best way to succeed in achieving a successful end to a difficult discussion, negotiation, or decision is to stick with the facts.  Emotions can lead us in the wrong direction as we focus on very normal reactions to these situations.  Understanding and communicating the facts can bring alignment.

So, before you choose a path be sure to examine the facts, then help share the facts.

What are the facts? Seek to first understand.  Galileo Galilei, one of the more famous to demonstrate the importance of discovering why actions occurred and how they could be predicted with mathematical precision. Prior to Galileo enhancing the then recently invented telescope, the common belief was that the solar system revolved around the Earth, although astronomers of the day were beginning to theorize differently. With the ability to now measure the solar phases of the plant Venus, he was able to demonstrate that Copernican’s theory was likely to be correct, the Sun was indeed the center of the of the orbit of the planets. Similarly, Galileo discovered the facts that all objects fall at equal rates, and the principle of the pendulum.  The enormity of these discoveries of fact cannot be over emphasized.

“Facts which at first seem improbable will, even on scant explanation, drop the cloak which has hidden them and stand forth in simple beauty.”–  Galileo Galilei

What are the impacts of the facts? Share the stories that matter.  In the first days of his presidency and in the midst of the great depression, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared a bank holiday to stop the run on the banks. After rapid action in Congress, the Emergency Banking Act was passed, which implemented federal deposit insurance and other laws.  Roosevelt knew that these new measures would only work if the America people believed in the banking system, which was complicated.  He decided he needed to explain the situation simply and why it was now safe again to put their money in the banks.  This was the beginning of what famously became his fireside chats.  As detailed in Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book Leadership in Turbulent Times, Roosevelt sought to connect with “a mason at work on a new building,”and, “a girl behind a counter, a farmer in his field.”  He began with, “I want to tell you what has been done in the last few days, why it was done, and what the next steps are going to be,”and then “with simple, plain language devoid of metaphors or eloquence, Roosevelt had accomplished his purpose of explanation and persuasion.

“Avoid dull facts; create memorable images; translate every issue into people’s lives.”– Franklin Delano Roosevelt