How to explain things
I absolutely adore explaining hard concepts to people; it is super fun to have to build their knowledge from the ground up and eventually get them to a point where they understand a complex system entirely.
An example of this would be explaining the rules of a card game to a friend. It is a pretty infamous joke that nobody likes the experience of having a new card game explained to them, there is always a wave of words, little explanation, a lot of starting over from the top, and eventually this ends in "you will get it once we start playing".
But I always relish the opportunity to be able to explain something to a friend, and I have been told I have a knack for it so here are some general tips:
- Have an internal model of all concepts first - This is arguably the most important part, you need to understand what you are explaining to them, AND understand in what order you will explain each concept to them. (Otherwise you will have to jump all over the place explaining a mesh of concepts and there is no clear linear progression for your poor listener.)
- Assume they know absolutely nothing - Start from the ground up, if they tell you they already know something take this in and adjust accordingly.
- Check in often to make sure they understand - You want to avoid losing them at any point along your explanation, because once you lose them any time you say "Does that make sense?" you will get a nod in response but they are glassy eyed and checking their phone.
- Be engaging - In order to avoid your listener getting lost in the information they are absorbing engage them and get their input and current understanding. Examples of this are:
- Getting them to explain a concept back to you
- Give lots of demonstrations that slowly involve more and more concepts and ask "Ok, what happens now?"
- Link concepts together - Explain how things connect. (For example: Explain X, then explain Y, then explain what happens if X and Y occur together, or if neither occurs. You want them to build up a model of how things relate to one another.)
- Answer any and all questions - Ask them questions back first so you understand exactly what isn't making sense to them.
- Take time to think before you speak - Useless words or bad explanations will make things harder for the both of you.
The basic framework is to explain concepts, then link them together. Repeat until all concepts are covered and integrated into the listener's internal model of how things relate together.
Go slow, and be clear.
Good luck.