The Difference Between Convincing and Persuading in Technical Communication
By
alainrk
Hand-rolled, kettle-boiled, baked to perfection. Worth every minute at the bakery.
Summary
The article explores the distinction between convincing and persuading, particularly in technical contexts. It discusses how engineers often create technically perfect proposals that fail to gain traction because they focus on logical arguments rather than emotional persuasion. The piece references Perelman's work on rhetoric and argumentation, emphasizing that successful communication requires moving beyond pure logic to connect with audiences on a deeper level. The author argues that understanding audience values, emotions, and decision-making processes is crucial for turning technically sound proposals into accepted initiatives.
Key quotes
· 5 pulledMany engineers (me included) I met have a drawer full of proposals that never went anywhere. Technically airtight. Benchmarked. Diagrammed. Presented to a room of intelligent people who nodded politely and went a different direction.
You walk away muttering the same thing every technically correct person has muttered since the beginning of organized work: 'They just don't get it'. They got it. They just weren't moved.
Perelman spent decades dismantling this blind spot. In his The new rhetoric: a treatise on argumentation, he drew a line that most of the intellectual tradition had been smudging.
Convincing is about logic and evidence; persuading is about values and emotions. The former appeals to the head, the latter to the heart.
The most technically perfect proposal in the world is worthless if it doesn't move people to action.
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