They rarely forget you. They never got one thing to hold.
Too many points. A list of five equal points leaves nothing first.
Memory keeps one core and lets the rest blur.
Big abstract words. “Improve,” “quality,” “going forward.”
Nothing to picture means nothing to keep.
Concrete words stick better. Paivio showed this in 1971.
No open question. A message that answers everything invites no chase.
A small gap makes the mind lean in. Loewenstein, 1994.
This pair is written for this page. It is not a panel run.
Keep every receipt this quarter. The budget is tight, hiring is paused, and we move in June — but receipts are the one thing that cannot be fixed later.
Four equal facts became one core, said first and said twice.
Now there is a line to hold.
Say the one thing first. Say it in concrete words.
Let the rest support it, not compete with it.
These checks come from the SUCCESs checklist in Made to Stick.
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath. This site is independent.
The authors did not endorse it.