We all want to communicate clearly and precisely. It just pays off. Everyone wants to avoid people coming back with unnecessary questions or following instructions they have not understood. Mistakes in communication take your time and cost the company money. When you say something in business, you want to be comprehensible. But you cannot achieve this without understanding the concept of identification level. So what is it?
When a physics professor talks to his faculty colleague – he uses many complex phrases that would be entirely confusing for a casual listener. However, he is sure that his partner understands him perfectly. He uses the high identification level because it saves time for both of them. This way, he communicates very proficiently and effectively conveys his message.
However, if the same professor lectures the students – he will probably choose more comprehensible words. And his communication should be completely different when he decides to tell a child about his work. He will change the identification level to one the communication requires to be fluid and precise. Because he can move between different identification levels – he can choose the one which is the most adequate for his audience.
When a recruit joins the army, his training starts with simple instructions: march, turn right, aim, shoot. It is a low level of identification. With time, the commands get more complicated: deploy a formation, attack this bunker, retreat to point X. When a general gives orders to the units: cut the supply lines, commence the encirclement maneuver, continue the attack towards the city, surrender the army – he communicates on a high level of identification.
The same in business (and life generally), you need to choose the right identification level that will allow for the most efficient communication with the other person. So, how can you apply it in practice? Here are some examples:
- When you hire someone or give a completely new task to him/her, start with the low identification level, and then you may slowly increase it once the person progresses.
- If you talk to experts, expect that the discussion will quickly drift toward the high level of identification. When you notice it, insist on keeping the conversation on the level you feel comfortable with. Asking questions is one of the best ways to lower the level.
- In business talks, match the identification level with the expectations of your partner. If you set it too high, he may miss some points – and your communication will not be optimal, and if you set it too low – he may feel offended.
- Psychological change always takes place at a low level of identification, so go down with the identification level whenever you want to facilitate changes. All effective influence techniques focus on bringing a person to a low level of identification, e.g., forming a recruit in the army, performing an initiation in a group, introducing social divisions in a nation.
- Employees and management expect that the level of identification you use will be appropriate for your position. So if C-level manager uses a low level of identification too often – it may be labeled as a micromanagement. Or if a specialist tries to use the corporate language (even if it makes sense) – this can be considered as an overstepping of competence.
- When a crisis occurs within your team or company, you should temporarily lower the level (compared to the one you would regularly use ) and make your instructions short and precise. It also corresponds well with the simplification of the objectives for staff and shortening the iteration of projects.
- Always decrease the level when in a hurry and increase it if you plan to cover-up your actions or trick people (when the brain is decoding complicated language structures, it loses efficiency and an ability to see a whole picture).
- If two people (or parties) use different levels of identification during the discussion- communication gets stalled. It is not so apparent unless you pay attention to it. You may want to adjust the level you are using to eliminate the gap so that the conversation can move forward.
- There is a spontaneous tendency to increase the level of identification with time. But, you will likely lose more when you increase complexity than otherwise. So when in doubt, keeping it simple is a better choice to go.
- Change of the communication context may require using entirely different sets of identification (while talking to the same people). It strongly depends on the situation. For example, negotiations require a specific language, but when you close the deal and take your partners to dine afterward, pick a level that allows for a more relaxed flow.
- Remember, successful communication is not about the level of identification you are most proficient at, but the one which guarantees to deliver your message most effectively.
Note: The identification levels framework was introduced to me by Professor Andrzej Nowak.