— Why credibility is gained without increasing numbers
People usually
ask about the results first.
"So, how much is it?"
"Did you eventually succeed?"
"Can you tell me in numbers?"
In front of these questions,
an honest person always hesitates.
They can say.
But if they say it as it is,
it feels like something is missing.
Because
no one asks
under what conditions that number came out.
Numbers do not lie. They just hide
"Traffic increased by 300%."
"Revenue doubled."
These sentences
may not be wrong.
But with just these sentences,
you can't know anything.
- What was the baseline
- How long was the period
- Were there any external variables
- Is the situation reproducible
Numbers without this information
become not facts but advertising slogans.
So you
become uncomfortable
talking about these numbers.
So, words decrease
An honest person
hesitates to talk about numbers.
Because
there are too many explanations
that come after the numbers.
"This is based on this assumption..."
"This only applies in this case..."
"It may not work in other situations..."
After saying all this,
the atmosphere cools down.
So the options become two again.
- Only mention the numbers
- Don't say anything at all
Most of the time,
you choose 2.
However, persuasion does not start with numbers
Persuasion
starts in the context, not the results.
What people really want to know is
this.
"Will this apply to my situation?"
For this question,
conditions are needed more than numbers.
- Under what assumptions
- What choices were made
- What was sacrificed
- Where were the limits
People who hear this
can judge for themselves.
And at that moment,
you become not a persuader
but someone who helps them make judgments.
Changes when starting to mention conditions
You didn't hide the results.
But
you didn't exaggerate the results either.
Instead, you started saying this.
- "This was only possible in this environment"
- "If these conditions change, the results will also change"
- "It's right to expect only this much"
Surprisingly,
when you said this,
more questions came.
"What about in my case?"
"What happens if we change these conditions?"
People
started the conversation.
Reduce the numbers, increase trust
It's an ironic change.
By not exaggerating the achievements,
trust was built.
Because
people felt
there was no exaggeration in your words.
Now your numbers
are not for bragging
but for reference.
And references
are always welcome.
Developers are already using this language
Think about code reviews.
"I always like this code."
You don't say that.
Instead, you say this.
- "This method is better in this situation"
- "Performance improves but complexity increases"
- "Maintenance perspective requires consideration"
This is not persuasion
but explanation.
The same goes for content.
Ending this article
You are not someone who can't talk about numbers.
You are someone who doesn't want to talk about numbers
alone.
And that attitude
is becoming more valuable in this era.
You don't need to increase results.
Just don't hide the conditions.
From that moment on,
your content
becomes a conversation, not a lesson.
In the next article,
I will talk about the freedom that came
when descending from an expert position, where all these transformations were possible.