Statistics

We tend to think that we will add power to a message by adding more. Perhaps more material or evidences or quotes in support of a point. Perhaps more volume or pitch or speed in delivery. It is very important to know when less is more! Sometimes the powerful clarity of a single statement is cloaked by extra material. Sometimes the secret to a deep impact in delivery is to do the opposite of the obvious.

When less is more in content – Long speeches are regularly forgotten, but succinct ones stand tall in history. Multiple exhibits given in evidence may confuse listeners who are trying to remember the detail without clarity as to the main goal. Numerous quotes may begin to feel like mere words when one pithy powerful quote might ring true, loud and clear. A complex main idea may be accurate, but will it change lives like a carefully honed succinct statement?

Tomorrow we’ll consider when less is more in delivery.

Some of us may never contemplate using a statistic in our message, others are drawn to them in every introduction they write. Statistics can be effective, or they can be totally counter-productive. I was just reading some advice on the use of statistics (not a preaching or Christian source, but helpful nonetheless). He suggested you decide whether the statistic is being used to add credibility or to be memorable (a statistic will not do both unless it is stated specifically and then restated in relevant terms that can be remembered). So here is James Humes advice in three points:

1. Reduce the number of statistics. It is better to use one than to use several. Pick the best one and then communicate it effectively. To use two or more will only confuse and undermine your goal.

2. Round the numbers in the statistics. Sometimes you will want to stay specific (to add credibility), but for a memorable stat, round the number. (More than 25,000 is better than saying 26,315.)

3. Relate the statistic to the listeners. Numbers are hard to visualize, so restate your stat in terms they will understand (so many thousands of square miles is better stated as “about the size of …” an area they know, or so many millions of dollars is better stated as “dollar bills placed end to end, this would stretch from Seattle to Miami, or whatever).

Often statistics are of minimal value in preaching, but sometimes an arresting or startling statistic will help in setting up a message or a point in a message. Be sure to use that stat wisely. And one piece of advice that should be added for us as preachers of truth – be truthful, don’t twist, don’t falsify, don’t lie. Integrity matters.