Improve Your High-Stakes Communication with the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram
- JD Solomon
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
After a full year of Communication Tips from Communicating with FINESSE (CWF), a few things became clear. Effective communication is not just about speaking clearly; it’s about connecting thoughtfully. Across dozens of short, practical posts, certain patterns emerged that reflect the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram®: Frame, Illustrate, Noise Reduction, Empathy, Structure, Synergy, and Ethics.
From boardrooms to public meetings, five key themes stood out in how professionals can strengthen their communication effectiveness.
1. Empathy Is the Foundation of Understanding
The most frequent theme throughout the year was empathy. Tips like “Replace You with We,” “How to Present Data to the Board,” and “Talk to Every Board Member the Same Way” emphasized that communication begins with putting yourself in the listener’s place.
Empathy in communication isn’t about being nice; it’s about being understood. We reduce barriers to comprehension when we adjust our words, tone, and visuals to the audience’s perspective. Communication insights like “Genuinely Focus on the Audience” remind us that effective professionals don’t just deliver information; they shape it to meet others where they are.
Empathy creates bridges. It’s what transforms technical expertise into shared understanding.
2. Structure Provides Confidence
A second strong theme was structure. CWF tips often returned to the idea that people trust information they can follow. Posts such as “The Three Act Structure,” “A Rightly Timed Pause,” and “Ask Simple Questions” all illustrated that well-framed communication feels intentional and reassuring.
Structure doesn’t have to be rigid. It can be as simple as opening with purpose, guiding listeners through logic, and closing with clarity. The tip “Three Indicators of a Rare Event” showed how even uncertainty can be communicated confidently when the story has a solid framework.
Clarity of structure makes complexity manageable for both the speaker and the audience.
3. Illustration Enhances Understanding
The Illustrate element of the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram® appeared frequently in visual and conceptual examples. Posts like “Guiding Graphic” and “PowerPoint Ready for Colorblind” explored how visual communication can make or break a message.
Illustration, in this sense, goes beyond charts and slides. It means making ideas tangible by turning the abstract into something audiences can see and feel. The posts encouraged communicators to think visually but also inclusively, ensuring that visuals remain accessible to everyone.
The best technical communicators use illustrations to provide information, not decoration. If your visuals exclude people with visual or hearing impairments, they confuse rather than clarify.
4. Synergy Strengthens Collaboration
Several tips explored how communication connects people rather than isolates them. Tips like “Communicate to the Boss’s Inner Circle” and "Let the Decision Maker Make Own Conclusion" showed that collaboration doesn’t mean saying everything. Effective collaboration means saying the right things at the right time.
Synergy happens when people feel part of a shared process. The communicator invites discovery rather than accepting pre-made solutions. This was especially true in tips encouraging professionals to ask more questions or let others find solutions.
Communication that builds synergy multiplies effectiveness. After all, all big decisions are made with multiple gatekeepers and advisors.
5. Ethics and Credibility Anchor Everything
Finally, ethics surfaced repeatedly in messages like “The Ethics of Framing Uncertainty.” This theme went beyond goes beyond honesty. It includes responsibility, preparation, and respect for accuracy. Credibility is the quiet power behind every successful interaction, especially when the stakes are high.
The tips tied ethics to professionalism. Senior leaders can sense when communicators have done their homework. Whether it’s presenting data, managing uncertainty, or representing others, ethical communication earns trust that shortcuts never will.
Communication without ethics might persuade for a moment, but it will never sustain trust over time. And big decisions are made over extended periods.
The FINESSE Fishbone Diagram and High-Stakes Communication
If there was one lesson from a year of CWF tips, it’s that communication is both a skill and a discipline. It can be learned, practiced, and refined, but only if we approach it with the same care and intention we hope our decision makers will give in return.
JD Solomon writes and speaks on decision-making, reliability, and communication for leaders and technical professionals. His work connects technical disciplines with human understanding to help people make better decisions and build stronger systems. Learn more at www.jdsolomonsolutions.com and www.communicatingwithfinesse.com
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