Why people hate your writing & love the Pyramid Principle

Knock-knock-knock. It’s that slack notification sound.

Oh god. Look at that wall of text.

*shudders*

Imagine you're in the middle of a hectic workday. You’re racing to get something done, you get this kind of message—a long, winding report from a colleague.

As you scroll through endless paragraphs, you can’t find the key point. Frustrating.

The writer and reader both in this situation suffers. The writer cause they’ve clearly spend too long writing nothing, and the reader because they’ve spent too long getting nothing.

It’s almost as if neither party speaks the same language.

Back in 2019, Airbnb sent my new hire cohort to this workshop and there I discovered the Pyramid Principle by Barbara Minto. It’s a game-changer in how we communicate, especially in business. Developed by Barbara Minto, this method has been a staple in consulting firms like McKinsey. If you want to have a productive, minimally confusing workday, clarity isn't just a luxury…it's a necessity.

So, how does the Pyramid Principle work? Why is it more effective than traditional writing methods? And how can you apply it to your own work?

The point first

At its core, the Pyramid Principle is about starting with your main idea or conclusion and supporting it with logically organized arguments. Imagine reading a report where the key message hits you right at the beginning—no fluff, no filler. Just pure clarity. This saves time and enhances understanding and persuasion.

Example:

Imagine a report on improving sales. A bad report might start with a lengthy introduction about market conditions and previous sales strategies. By the time you reach the main point, you've already spent considerable time sifting through background information and some eyes may have already glazed over. Attention and focus are finite resources.

In contrast, a report using the Pyramid Principle starts with the main conclusion:

• To boost sales by 20% in the next quarter, we need to implement targeted social media campaigns and enhance customer service training.
• This clear, direct statement immediately informs the reader of the key action points.

Following this main idea, you can lay out the support for the conclusion:

1. Targeted Social Media Campaigns:
   • Rationale: analysis shows that our target demographic is highly active on social media platforms.
   • Strategy: develop content tailored to the interests and behaviors of this demographic.
   • Expected outcome: increase in lead generation and customer engagement.
2. Enhanced Customer Service Training:
   • Rationale: customer feedback indicates a need for improved service interactions.
   • Strategy: implement comprehensive training programs focusing on empathy, problem-solving, and communication skills.
   • Expected outcome: higher customer satisfaction and repeat business.

By organizing the report this way, the reader gets a clear and immediate understanding of the proposed actions and their justifications. This approach:

• saves time
• makes the argument more compelling
• makes the argument easier to follow,

Our brains love this

This isn't just about style—it's backed by psychology. The Pyramid Principle reduces cognitive load by chunking information. It leverages the primacy effect, where we remember the first piece of information best. It's like Maslow's hierarchy, but for information processing.

When information is presented in a pyramid structure, each point logically builds on the previous one. This method reduces cognitive load because it allows your brain to follow a clear, logical progression. Instead of juggling multiple pieces of disjointed information, you can focus on understanding one coherent argument at a time.

By placing the main idea at the beginning, the Pyramid Principle ensures that the most critical information sticks in the reader's mind. For example, if a pitch starts with the main recommendation, "we should invest in renewable energy to cut costs and enhance our brand image," this statement is more likely to be remembered than if it were buried in the middle of the document.

What it looks like

Want to implement this? Start with the answer—your main conclusion. Group supporting points logically. Use clear headings to reflect the structure. Refine your pyramid iteratively for clarity and flow. It's a skill that gets better with practice.

Here’s a diagram from lennysnewsletter.com

How we use it

Me and my team meet with our clients a few times a month. We try to be as efficient and impactful as possible on these 30-minute calls and we structure our slides around the Pyramid.

Our order:

• exec summary with key takeaways
• metrics table with data for takeaways
  • update on tactics deployed and how they impacted performance
  • learnings + observations
  • resulting next steps
• deep dive slides to provide further context on key points from takeaways
• action items summary

This organizes the conversation around the biggest things that matter the most, and gives us ample surface area to drill deeper as necessary.

If you want this layout for yourself, make a copy of my template here.

And if you want to work together - give me a shout!

As always, share this with your team, your friends, your dog, anyone you think that might benefit. Appreciate it.

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