When I first started public speaking some forty years ago, I was always amazed that some people in the audience understood what I was saying while others didn’t understand the message.
I thought “poor crowd, half are smart and half are not smart.”
Then I went through the PowerPoint phase of my career, letting the pictures on the screen do the “speaking.”
Unfortunately, I experienced the same results – it seemed that half of the group was intelligent and the other half wasn’t.
It was then that it finally dawned on me.
Some folks are auditory learners and some people are visual learners.
Further study concluded that most people are either one or the other, but not both.
That’s why when I write these columns (in a sense auditory) I try to paint a picture of the actual visual.
If you don’t understand the meaning of my columns, it’s because I’ve failed to appeal to both senses. Building on that thought, the most graphic explanation of why I believe the financial markets will collapse is exemplified by the beach ball example.
If you take a beach ball and push it under water, when you release it, it will fly out of the water the same distance as it was submerged.
So, the shallower the depth for the beach ball the smaller the rise, and the greater the depth the greater the rise.
Following 2008, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (the beach ball) had been dramatically submerged from 14,000 to 6,500.
A beach ball submerged that far below the surface would fly out dramatically and the markets certainly did.
Some say it was the interference of the Federal Reserve and their money printing that caused the dramatic rebound.
Yes, the Fed was instrumental, but I believe the laws of physics are even more powerful. Ultimately, the beach ball which will reach a pinnacle on slowing momentum and crash back down to earth, and so to will the financial markets.
Even though forces like strong winds (central bankers) constantly intervene to try to keep the ball (the markets) up, the laws of nature will not be denied.
Therefore, for all the auditory learners, I know you can absolutely understand the words. To all of the visual learners, I know you can clearly see the picture.
I’m certainly glad that I’ve wised up in learning how to communicate to both senses.
It wasn’t my audience that wasn’t smart years ago, it was definitely me.