In 1963, Barbara Minto became the first female consultant famous company McKinsey. Management noted Barbara's outstanding writing abilities and sent her to London in 1966 to develop writing skills among the company's employees. It was McKinsey employees and clients who were Minto's first students. Barbara explored problems in writing texts that involve unclear formulation of thoughts. Barbara Minto took up the study of the thinking process, believing that it is its features that underlie a person’s ability to clearly express their thoughts. Ultimately, this served as the basis for the development of the theory of the pyramid principle. Since 1973 Barbara has been managing own company Minto International Inc. She successfully teaches at business schools at Harvard, Stanford, Chicago, as well as at major companies in the USA and Europe. She specializes in teaching the golden rules to both business newbies and professionals whose responsibilities include writing complex reports, analyses, memos and presentations.
These rules and the operation of the Minto Pyramid Principle are set out by Barbara in the book of the same name. The carefully compiled content of the book will be useful in mastering skills business communication. But even a quick glance at the key ideas of the Minto Pyramid Principle will help you present any information logically, clearly and understandably.
LOGIC IN WRITING
1. Pyramid.
Ideas are necessarily grouped according to some characteristics. Most effective method presentation of ideas - from top to bottom, so the correct grouping is presented in the form of a pyramid. Ideas within the pyramid must obey three “golden rules”:
- Ideas at each level should summarize the ideas grouped below.
- The ideas of each group must be logically interconnected.
- The ideas of each group should go to logical sequence.
For correct drafting The document should be schematically summarized into a pyramid and checked for compliance with the three “golden rules”.
2. Components of the pyramid.
Using a pyramid structure, ideas are arranged vertically in the form of a question-answer dialogue, and horizontally through a logical connection based on the principle of induction or deduction, but without mixing these two methods. The introductory part of a document is written in narrative form and is a Question that is answered by the rest of the document.
3. Building a pyramid.
Top down:
- Identify the Subject.
- Define the Question.
- Give answer.
- Check that the situation and the Development of the situation lead to the Question.
- Check the Answer.
- Complete the Main Level.
Down up:
- Make a list of all the statements you would like to make.
- Determine the connection between them.
- Draw conclusions.
- Write the introductory part.
4. Features of writing an introduction.
The introductory part is written for each group of Main Level ideas and should briefly summarize and recall the ideas, rather than inform at length about them. The introductory part should consist of the Situation, Development of the Situation, Question and Answer.
5. Deduction and induction.
Deduction is a sequence of judgments arising from each other. Induction involves grouping together similar ideas or related activities. Therefore, at the Main Level it is better to use the inductive method.
LOGIC IN REASONING
6. Establishing a logical sequence.
A very important action aimed at identifying the relationship of ideas.
Types of logical sequence:
- Chronological - if you need to describe the process.
- Structural - if you need to describe the structure of something.
- Comparative - if the grouping is based on classification by degree of importance.
To best structure your presentation, state each idea as briefly as possible -> group similar ideas -> arrange them in the appropriate sequence.
When describing actions, formulate each action as specifically as possible so that it represents an end product -> group together those actions that lead to the same result -> identify the process or structure that formed the basis of the grouping and arrange the ideas in the appropriate sequence ->
If a situation is being described, group similar ideas -> determine the structure that underlies the grouping -> formulate the ideas into complete sentences and arrange them in the appropriate sequence -> make sure you haven't missed anything.
7. Summarizing grouped ideas
Ideas within one group should be mutually exclusive, and taken all together, they should exhaustively characterize the subject (the MECE rule applies here - Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive).
When generalizing ideas that describe actions, it is necessary to group them depending on the result achieved. When generalizing ideas that describe a situation, they should be grouped according to the characteristic that unites them. Finding a unifying characteristic of ideas is quite simple - all similar ideas will relate to the same subject, or all of them will consider the same action, or they will all be directed at the same object, or all of them will imply one thing and the same statement.
We structure the ideas as follows.
Action ideas: State ideas briefly, leaving only keywords-> determine the level of abstraction -> formulate ideas as clearly as possible -> determine the result of their implementation.
Ideas describing the situation: find similarities in subjects, actions or objects -> determine the category that unites them -> formulate a conclusion.
LOGIC IN PROBLEM SOLVING
8. Definition of the problem
We determine the problem by the following course of action:
- Determine the area in which the problem arose.
- Determine what has disrupted the stability in this area.
- Identify Undesirable Outcome P1.
- Define Desired Outcome P2.
- Determine whether any action has been taken to resolve the problem.
- Identify the Question that needs to be answered in the study.
The resulting problem definition should be used in the introductory part of the document.
9. Structuring the problem analysis process
Here you can use logical trees to search possible ways solving a problem and identifying relationships between the ideas of one group. But first define the problem -> use research models to visualize the structure of the problem area -> come up with some hypotheses regarding possible reasons problems -> collect information that confirms or disproves hypotheses.
LOGIC IN PRESENTATIONS
10. Displaying a pyramid of ideas on document pages
Create a clear document structure using headings, indents, underlines, fonts, and numbering.
Use links to move from one group of ideas to another.
11. Displaying a pyramid of ideas on the screen.
When creating text slides, express your thoughts as concisely and simply as possible. Use slides with images to visually demonstrate the data, making sure to include a title. Sketch your presentation to ensure the correct order of the slides. Frequent rehearsals will help you deliver an effective presentation.
12. Displaying a pyramid of ideas in writing.
Describe the mental image you created of what you want to talk about.
Although the book is intended for a wide range of readers, abundance practical examples from the life of a consulting company will in many ways prove useful specifically to employees in this field of activity.
Barbara Minto "The Minto Pyramid Principle: The Golden Rules of Thinking" business letter and oral presentations" [translated from English by I.I. Yurchik, Yu.I. Yurchik]. - M.: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2008. - 272 p.
Barbara Minto "The Minto Pyramid Principle. Logic in writing, thinking and problem solving"
The author of the proposed hypothesis is a mechanical engineer. He has been living in Israel for almost four years. Before that, he lived his whole life in Moscow, during the Great Patriotic War was a long-range aviation navigator; after graduating from the institute, he worked as a designer at foundry engineering enterprises. Jochiel Don-Yachio became interested in the Egyptian pyramids from an engineering point of view and decided to answer the old question in his own way: was it possible to build the Pyramid within the period indicated in historical documents and, if so, how?
Many books and studies have been written about the great Egyptian pyramids at Giza. However, questions related to the methods of their construction still remain open, and the arguments in favor of certain answers do not seem entirely convincing. Maybe that's why I would like to express my assumptions. As the main source of information, I used the famous book by J.F. Lauer “The Mysteries of the Egyptian Pyramids”, which most fully collected digital data related to the construction of these monuments of the Ancient World.
I will give several parameters that do not need to be checked and will be the starting point for further discussions. For this purpose, true dimensional accuracy is not at all necessary, so we assume that the length of the side of the base of the Cheops pyramid is 230 m, the number of steps of the pyramid is 200. The number of stone blocks with an average weight of each 2.5 tons and a volume of 1 cubic. m, laid in the body of the structure, 2.6 million. In addition, 115,500 marble slabs were required to cover the pyramid.
Let us also pay attention to the very important point. In addition to laying stone blocks on horizontal platforms at each level, which is a relatively simple matter, the blocks had to be raised higher and higher, and this task is the main one when calculating the pace of construction. J.F. Lauer writes that there are two answers to this question. He refers to the writings of Herodotus, who suggested that the laying of multi-ton blocks from one level to another was carried out using wooden machines. The second method is described by Diodorus Siculus, who suggested that the Egyptians, in order to lift blocks to different levels earthen mounds were used. The debate continues to this day, but here’s what’s important: as a result, the German engineer L. Kroon calculated that workers could lay 150 stone blocks per day. This parameter can be taken to calculate the construction time of the Cheops pyramid. Although during the construction of this pyramid the weight of the block was almost twice that of the one that the German engineer calculated for his brother.
Herodotus, according to the priests, wrote that the Cheops pyramid took 20 years to build. Could the ancient Egyptians have built a giant pyramid in this period? Let's try to mentally follow the initial stage of construction, without taking into account the methods of moving stone blocks upward as the structure grows. The construction site was chosen by the architect on the rocky plateau of the Libyan Desert. On this site, a square of the base was marked with the sides oriented according to the cardinal points. There are still no convincing versions of how the ancient Egyptians, who did not know a compass, were able to so accurately orient one of the sides of the square to the north with an error of only a few minutes. Researchers, describing the pyramids, note that all the blocks are so carefully processed and tightly fitted to each other that it is impossible to insert a knife blade between them. In addition, it was also necessary to maintain the horizontality of each row of masonry. Such strict construction conditions, of course, significantly limited the speed of work.
Modern Egyptologists do not very clearly determine the number of working days per year that were used to build the pyramid. Some believe that three months were allotted for the work, when the Egyptian population was free from field work. Apparently this was during the Nile flood. However, Herodotus recorded the stories of the priests that the Egyptians carried stones from quarries located on the Arabian ridge, that is, from the right bank of the Nile, from where other Egyptians transported blocks across the river on ships, and so they worked continuously for every three months there were occupied one hundred thousand people. We will adhere to Herodotus' version, otherwise the time frame for constructing the pyramid will increase several times.
Now let’s try, at least in general terms, to construct a cyclogram of the technological chain in order to outline those operations that, in fact, determine productivity. At the beginning of the technological chain there are quarries where stone blocks are mined, then the stones are brought down from the quarries, where they are processed. Next comes the transportation of the blocks from the quarries to the construction site and, finally, their placement in the structure.
How were blocks cut from limestone hills? This operation is described in popular literature as follows: along the boundaries of a stone block marked on a limestone rock, workers hollowed out deep grooves in the stone, into which they hammered wedges of dry wood and watered them with water. The wet wood began to swell, the crack grew larger and the block broke off. The broken stone was pulled out of the mines using ropes. This operation is not divided into elements, and each block is mined by one team of workers from start to finish.
The stone was mined in this or another way does not matter to us. It is important to understand that it takes a lot of time to extract multi-ton blocks of strictly defined sizes, and if we agree that during a working day one team of masons will be able to extract one stone, then this is not so little. Now remember L. Kroon’s figure 150. 150 blocks per day means there had to be 150 quarries supplying one block per day for construction to proceed uninterruptedly. Let's try to estimate, again purely tentatively, what the quarries look like and how much space they can occupy. To extract 2.6 million blocks from 150 quarries, each of them must have a supply of suitable material of at least 20 thousand blocks. Apparently, this is a series of calcareous rocks in which stone is quarried in ledges. In fact, the volume of such quarries, taking into account waste, should be greater than the volume of the pyramid being built, and they can be located over a space of several kilometers.
The next major operation is processing the blocks to exact dimensions on all six sides. If the blocks must be adjacent to each other without the slightest gap, processing must be done very carefully, maintaining parallelism of the horizontal planes. Moreover, while processing the stone, it has to be turned repeatedly. It would probably have been advisable to entrust this operation to one team of masons. Despite the high complexity of the operation, we will take the processing time of one block equal to one working day. Thus, during the day, 150 blocks were produced, suitable for laying.
The next operation is to transport them to the construction site. For this purpose, the finished blocks had to be transported on skids or in some other way from all 150 sites to the main road and then to the construction site.
We do not know either the speed of movement or the distances over which the blocks had to be dragged. Perhaps the speed of the teams was very low, and the distances were very long, and in order to deliver all 150 stones to the place, it was necessary to spend not one, but two or three days. But let’s discard possible additional delays and agree that all 150 blocks were delivered within Right place within one working day.
Now, having approximate estimates of the productivity of each operation, we can easily calculate the time required to build the body of the pyramid: 365 working days a year, 150 blocks are laid in laziness, the volume of the pyramid is 2.6 million cubic meters. As a result, we get 47.5 years.
But that is not all. It is required to cover the body of the pyramid with marble slabs. A very responsible operation, since the cladding is carried out from top to bottom and the slabs must be raised to a great height. The fit of the slabs must be very precise, without the slightest cracks, using mortar and final sanding at the workplace. In addition, constant monitoring of the angles of inclination of the pyramid faces is necessary. You cannot use this operation a large number of teams, so as not to start cladding in many places with subsequent labor-intensive joining. It can be assumed that 40 teams, 10 on each face, could work simultaneously on all faces at an average height of 70 m. If a team lays two slabs in one day, and 40 teams, respectively, 80, then it will take 3.9 years to cover the entire pyramid (reminder: the number of slabs is 115,500).
Then the construction time of the lined pyramid will be 47.5 + 3.9 = 51.4 years, and taking into account the utilization rate of the technological chain (0.75), the total construction time is 51.4: 0.75 = 68.5 years. We will not take into account the time spent on creating the pyramid of interior spaces, galleries and passages in the building.
So, if the Cheops pyramid was built according to the generally accepted method, then it would have to take 70 years to build it. Where does the error lie in these arguments? How can you do it in 20 years, the same 20 years that Herodotus wrote about?
Maybe we haven't taken into account full use a hundred thousand army of workers?
Let's calculate how many workers are simultaneously engaged in construction in the above technological chain.
1. When cutting down blocks in 150 quarries, there are 10 workers in a team 1500 workers. 2. When processing blocks in 150 areas, 10 workers per team 1500 workers. 3. Auxiliary workers for operations 1 and 2 4500 workers. 4. Transportation of blocks from 150 sites, 80 workers per team 12,000 workers. 5. Laying blocks of 10 workers in 150 teams 1500 workers. 6. Auxiliary workers for operation 5 4500 workers. Total: 25,500 workers.
It turns out that 25,500 people should be involved in all work every day. But this is far from the 100 thousand that Herodotus wrote about. To ensure that our calculations are correct, let’s once again check the reliability of the main performance parameter, namely 150 blocks per day. Is it possible to increase labor productivity by using a huge mass of workers?
Let's look at the first level of masonry at the very base of the pyramid with sides of a square of 230 meters. How will 150 block-laying crews be accommodated along a 920-meter perimeter? It turns out that the teams are forced to crowd at a distance of 6 meters from each other. If, for testing, we take a level of 70 meters along the height of the pyramid with a square perimeter of 460 meters, then 150 teams will not be able to work at all, since the distance between them will be only 3 meters.
So the question of one hundred thousand workers per day remains open. We will return to it a little later. For now, let’s summarize some intermediate results: about 70 years are needed to cut down one or several limestone mountains in one place, saw them into cubes, from which to build another mountain in a new place, which, you see, is absolute nonsense. If we take a more realistic approach to the question of the number of blocks laid during a working day, and reduce their number, say, to 100 or less, then the construction period will increase to 100 years, or even more.
But it cannot be that such a famous architect as Hemuin started a construction that he would hardly be able to complete during his life. Let's return from the distant past to our time and look through the eyes of an ordinary person at the First Wonder of the World. What do we see? A gigantic structure that has stood for more than 46 centuries. The cladding has been torn off a long time ago, but strictly horizontal steps are clearly visible, there are more than 200 of them. It is striking that no serious damage or cracks are visible in this hulk. But over the course of thousands of years, there have been many earthquakes in this region, and some of them were of terrible force.
Such seismic resistance is only possible if the pyramid is a solid monolith. This somehow doesn’t fit with its construction from millions of cubes. But if we come closer to the pyramid, we will be amazed to see that the horizontal rows of masonry are formed not by carefully processed blocks, but... by blocks of stones of different sizes in width and height. If the entire pyramid, including its invisible core, was built from such unhewn stones, then it should have collapsed a long time ago, and our contemporaries would have nothing to study so closely. And if these visible outer stones are not a continuation of the main masonry, then what are they for, what is their purpose?
So the conclusion suggests itself that the Cheops pyramid was built in some other way, simpler and relatively faster, knowing which, many of the mysteries of the structure could be explained.
It doesn’t take a great flight of fancy to imagine, in place of the existing pyramids in the distant past, an ordinary limestone hill about 150 meters high, gently descending into the valley. It is quite natural to assume that the architect who chose good place for construction, the decision arose not to cut down other limestone hills and drag building material to this place, but to cut down the planned structure in an already existing hill.
The conditions were ideal for this. Firstly, the body of the pyramid became a monolith, going far into the depths of the earth. Secondly, there is a large free area around the construction site, which could accommodate hundreds of thousands of workers. Their task was to chip away and drag down the cut down excess material, level the surface of the hill during construction, crush blocks and scatter stones in the lowlands. These same workers, without any particular difficulty, dragged the necessary materials up the flat surface. Construction Materials. Thirdly, it became possible to accurately orient the pyramid according to the cardinal points, which will be discussed further. Fourthly, there was no need for any complex mechanisms to move stone blocks to height. Fifthly, it was possible to penetrate into the massif at any level of the pyramid, breaking through passages and constructing rooms.
Let us now try, without going into details, to mentally follow the construction technology according to our version.
First of all, the top of the hill was probably cut off and the horizontal area was leveled. Then a small pyramid, several meters high, with a square base and the desired angle of inclination of all faces, was erected on the site. This pyramid could have been made of light material, even wood, because it had to be rotated to accurately orient itself to the north. Inside the pyramid there could be a device, perhaps in the form of a pipe and a cord with a plumb line, for astronomical observations of the North Star or other object that corresponded to the position “north”. After precise orientation, the pyramid was fixed on the site and the ledges of the pyramid began to be cut down. The angles of inclination of the faces were controlled at the initial stage of work on the small pyramid.
When the body rose a little and there was no need for precise orientation along the control pyramid, it was dismantled and a top made of stone blocks was erected in its place. Perhaps this top was somehow attached to the body of the structure. Special literature mentions that on the upper platform of the Cheops pyramid, holes for attaching some kind of crowning structure are allegedly still visible.
It is appropriate to pay attention to the composition rock, from which the pyramid was cut down. These are limestones that occur in layers of great thickness - several hundred and even thousands of meters. They come in different densities, are well processed and sawn. Apparently, this is why the architect decided that it would be relatively easy to cut out the ledges, but then it was necessary to strengthen the body of the pyramid along the outer contour with stone blocks made of denser and hard material. It was mined from quarries on the other side of the Nile. These dense stones were transported to the cut out ledges and there they were laid in several rows in depth and height. The disordered stone blocks that we see now are those steps or rows of which there are more than two hundred in the Cheops pyramid. Of course, these stones acquired their present appearance as a result of a long weathering process in the conditions of the Libyan Desert after the facing slabs were torn off in ancient times.
Let's try to approximately determine the duration of construction of the Cheops pyramid based on the estimated technological process. The question immediately arises: is the described technology not as meaningless as in the generally accepted version? Indeed, to cut down the body of the pyramid, it is necessary to tear down to the base all the excess material of the limestone hill, the volume of which is 30 times greater than the volume of the pyramid itself. Yes, indeed, the volume of transported material increases sharply, but the labor intensity of the process is significantly reduced. It will be necessary to cut down stone blocks of certain sizes by at least 10 times less. The operation of hewing them from all sides is almost completely eliminated, and, most importantly, work can be carried out continuously over the entire area of the hill, using the labor of tens and hundreds of thousands of workers. In the process of work, not only a pyramid is cut out of the hill, but also a transport artery similar to those embankments that were erected, according to one hypothesis, to lift stone blocks using the “old” technology with the only difference that this natural embankment is not erected, but destroyed as the structure grows.
Let's imagine the technological chain of the construction process. We will not consider the initial stage, that is, the installation of a control pyramid, but will go straight to the operation of cutting down the ledges.
Let's calculate the amount of work to make a ledge located in the middle of the pyramid's height. The width of the shelf of the ledge depends on its height from the ratio of the sides of the triangle 14: 11, which corresponds to the angle of inclination of the faces of the pyramid to the base equal to 51 0 50".
The volume of the ledge is equal to the product of the perimeter of a square at an average height, which is 460 meters, and the cross-sectional area of the ledge. However, when cutting down ledges, for freedom of maneuver during further laying of reinforcing stones, we will increase the width of the shelf to 5 m, keeping in mind that the same teams mentioned above cut the hill at this level. So, the volume of the ledge is 1.5 x 5 x 460 = 3450 cubic meters. m. There will be an average of 100 ledges, then the total volume of work will be: 3450 x 100 = 345,000 cubic meters. m. Considering that in this operation it is necessary to strictly maintain two parameters: the vertical of the wall of the ledge and the horizontal of the shelf, we can accept the productivity of this operation, as with conventional cutting of stones using the accepted technology, equal to 150 cubic meters. m. per day. Then it will take 345,000 to cut down all the ledges: 150 x 365 = 6.3 years.
Let's calculate the volume of masonry that strengthens the walls. On one ledge the volume is 1.5 x 3.6 x 460 = 2480 cubic meters. m., and for 100 ledges 248,000 cubic meters. m. Time to lay strengthening stones with a volume of 1 cubic. m is equal to 248,000: 150 x 365 = 4.5 years.
The next operation, cladding with marble slabs, is carried out in the same way as with the “old” technology, therefore, the cladding time will be 3.9 years.
Since all operations are carried out sequentially, the total construction time of the Cheops pyramid is: 6.3 + 4.5 + 3.9 = 14.7 years, and using the technological chain utilization factor of 0.75 we have 14.7: 0.75 = 19.6 years.
Let's summarize some results. So, the pyramid was built to the maximum short term, which Herodotus mentioned from the words of the priests. All one hundred thousand slaves are involved, however, here too, with the exception of a few thousand, 13.5 years after the hill is razed, they may remain without work. What if the great architect, who planned to tear down the hill and cut out the Cheops pyramid from it, decided not to miss the ideal opportunity to use the entire massif of the hill? Then it is easy to assume that all three pyramids - Cheops, Khafre and Mikerin - represent a single architectural complex, completed by the same builder, and at the same time. If this was actually the case, then for this purpose it could be used great amount workers who were not fully employed when creating the first pyramid. In this case, the construction of the entire complex could last a little over 20 years. In addition, a huge amount of material extracted from the hill - lime blocks - could be used in the construction of various religious buildings. For the construction of the other two pyramids, there was no need to orient them to the north using the control pyramid, since orientation could be done using the more or less ready-made Cheops pyramid. Perhaps for this reason the tops of the pyramids of Khafre and Mikerin were not destroyed, while the top of the first pyramid disappeared.
How can one confirm or refute the stated hypothesis about the method of construction of the Great Pyramids at Giza?
There are several ways. The first, naturally, is associated with the search for stonework inside the pyramid. You only need to check those passages and rooms that are located above ground level and are not lined with any material. If traces of block masonry are clearly visible, then the hypothesis is incorrect. If passages are punched in a solid monolith, this serves as an argument in its support.
The second method is very problematic, since it involves penetration into the pyramid from the side of any of the four faces at a level slightly above the middle of the pyramid. In this case, when dismantling the strengthening stones, a monolithic core will appear after approximately four meters.
The third method is not entirely common, but it can also help. The fact is that when constructing pyramids, whether from bottom to top or top to bottom, it is necessary to check and measure the angles of inclination of all four faces. When constructing a structure from the bottom up, at the base of the pyramid there should be a square that appeared after the initial marking. When constructing masonry steps, errors in determining the angles of inclination are possible. But even small errors can lead to unpleasant consequences. So, for example, if there is an error in the angle of, say, half a degree, the crowning faces of the pyramid can move up or down by up to 1.5 m, and it will be a serious problem to bring all four faces at the top to one point. If you cut a pyramid from top to bottom, then, of course, the top will look perfect, but the sides of the base of the pyramid, due to small errors in measuring the angles of inclination of the faces, may differ in size. Moreover, these differences can be quite large, on the order of 1.5-2 m or more. Of course, for the observer below, the huge volume of the pyramid conceals these differences, and they are not striking. Therefore, if there is a difference in the sizes of the sides of the base, then this speaks in favor of the hypothesis that the pyramid was built from top to bottom.
Various sources provide some data on the dimensions of the base side. These data differ from each other: from 230.35 to 233.16 m. Moreover, nowhere is it indicated which side was measured: northern, eastern, southern or western. Apparently, the researchers, convinced that there was a square at the base of the pyramid, measured only one side each time. By the way, in our time it is not so easy to make these measurements for the reason that the ribs of all four faces are badly damaged by time and it is very difficult to find on the ground those points that are the true continuation of the ribs.
Of course, for our purposes, we should not go to extremes and look for extra millimeters, or even centimeters. It is enough to convincingly prove that some side of the base of the pyramid differs from the others in length, that is, the base is not a square, but a quadrangle. And finally, fourthly, you should look not far from the pyramids, under a thousand-year-old layer of sand, for fragments of limestone blocks cut down in ancient times, remaining during the construction of stone giants.
Yohedi Don-Yachio
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Imagine that there are some secret principles, using which you are doomed to success. You manage to convey information to a client, partner, boss, spouse, your child, an opponent, a neighbor... or any person so that he signs an agreement, makes a purchase, raises your salary or gives you new position, agrees to all your terms and so on, in general, you get desired result. Is this possible? Yes. Your secret weapon is the Minto Pyramid. Use it in negotiations, correspondence, polemics, your publications, in any form of communication with other people, and the consequences will pleasantly surprise you.
Minto Pyramid Principles
The author of this method, Barbara Minto, worked for more than 20 years at the number one American consulting company McKinsey. Not all deals were successful, and she wanted to understand why, understand the reasons for success or failure in negotiations with clients, and what to do about it. As a result, she concluded that it was not at all a matter of the qualifications of the company’s employee. The main reason for obtaining a particular result is the way the information is conveyed to the client.
Barbara Minto started with the basics - the features of thinking. Based on how a person perceives information, she developed her own pyramid system. Thanks to it, people can clearly, concisely, competently and effectively structure their speech, compose reports, write letters or other texts, give presentations... And, of course, you yourself understand how all this can increase your efficiency and, accordingly, the quality of life...
So, Minto's Pyramid is a way in which information is presented in a strict hierarchy according to the principle of a pyramid, where at the top is the main idea, and at the base are clarifying details. And this is not without reason - the human brain perceives data this way, it is designed this way, and, you see, it would be unreasonable not to use such knowledge to achieve your goals.
The success of presenting information in a pyramidal way also lies in the fact that the essence is indicated at the beginning, and then everything else. By doing this, you save time for yourself and your interlocutor - for various reasons, he may not listen or read to the end of your work, or you may be interrupted, but the main idea will already be conveyed, which means your goal will be achieved.
The Minto Pyramid is a multi-level system. The first level, the peak, as we have already defined, is the main idea, the essence of your narrative. At the second level, you divide the idea stated “above” into parts. At the third stage, the postulates of the second level are decomposed into more detailed components. On the fourth - third and so on.
An important point is that at each individual level, thoughts must be interconnected and proceed in a logical sequence (deductive or inductive, chronological, structural, classification and comparative).
The pyramid can have as many “tiers” as you like, as long as you have something to say. However, keep in mind that human perception has limits, the brain can get tired and lose concentration, so do not overuse it. 3-4 levels of the pyramid are considered optimal for a small performance.
How to build a Minto Pyramid
Let's move on from theory to practice. So where to start and how to present information according to Barbara Minto's principles?
It is customary to build a pyramid in two ways: “top down” and “bottom up”. It is believed that the first is the most effective. However, if your thoughts are confused and you don’t know where to start, act in the second way and, above all, decide on the details and details that will ultimately lead you to the “top”.
At first glance, the system may seem complicated. In fact, for your information to line up in a pyramid, you just need to answer a series of questions.
To create a top-down pyramid, you can ask yourself next questions(they are very approximate, general, they need to be adapted to your specific topic):
First level
- What will we talk about? (Item).
- What problem are you solving? (Question).
- What is the solution to your problem? (The answer is the main idea of the speech).
Second level
- What is the this moment the situation in this area?
- What are the difficulties?
- Has the problem been identified and is it being resolved somehow?
Third level
- What new questions arise after answering the previous one?
- What is the best way to answer, inductive or deductive?
- For the inductive method, what is the unifying feature of grouping thoughts?
For the next levels you can use questions from the third...
Building a bottom-up pyramid is justified when you have all the information, a lot of ideas, and you find it difficult to put them into a coherent narrative. Therefore you need:
If you are preparing information according to the principles of the Minto Pyramid, do not neglect the following recommendations:
- Put the postulates of the main idea in the title, avoid generalizations here.
- Building a pyramid “from top to bottom” is the most effective.
- The first level should contain information whose truth is obvious to the reader/listener (situation, problem, question).
- All statements require justification until questions about them disappear.
- Information must be structured (divided into subheadings, in italics or bold, use hierarchical numbering).
- If possible, you need to visually formulate the postulates of the narrative according to the principle of a pyramid.
Remember, using these simple principles, you will easily master presentation and general communication skills, and you will even become competent.
It is usually easier to build a pyramid from the top. This is because you first think about what you are most confident in, that is, the subject of conversation, which should be familiar to the reader. The introductory part of the document reminds you of the subject.
But writing an introductory paragraph is not so easy. Its structure should allow the necessary ideas to be presented gradually, one after another.
To write the introductory part, follow the diagram shown in rice. 4 and described below.
(1) Fill the top rectangle
- What Subject are you discussing?
- What Question does the reader have regarding this Subject?
- What is the Answer to this Question?
Check the consistency of your answer with the structure of the introductory part
4. What is the initial situation?
5. What is the Development of the Situation?
(2). Do your Question and Answer follow from here?
Define Main Level
7. Is your answer based on the method of deduction or induction?
If this is a method of induction, then which generic concept should be chosen for generalization?
Formulate supporting ideas
8. At this level, repeat the question-answer dialogue.
Rice. 4. Structure elements are interconnected
- Draw a rectangle. He will be the top of your pyramid. If you already know the one being discussed Item, fit it into a rectangle. If not, go to step #2.
- Identify Question (B). Try to imagine your reader. Who is your document addressed to and what might the reader ask? If you know this, then formulate a Question and move on to step #3. If not, go to step #4.
- Write the Answer (O) if you know it, or indicate that you will provide it below.
- Identify Situation (C). You must be sure that you clearly understand the Question and Answer - only then will you be able to formulate them. To do this, you talk about the Subject and the Situation around it, and then make the first irrefutable statement. It is important to choose a statement with which the reader will agree - either because he knows something about it, or because it is a widely known fact.
- Describe the Development of the Situation (R). You say that something happened in the Situation you described: a problem arose or some logical incompatibility emerged. And here you begin a dialogue with the reader. Imagine that in response to your story the reader nods affirmatively and says: “Yes, I know. So, what is next?" remember, that Development of the Situation should initiate Question.
- Double check Question And Answer. If the statement is about Development of the Situation did not raise a Question in the reader, replace this statement with another. It is possible that you incorrectly identified the Development of the Situation or Question.
The purpose of this entire procedure is to make sure that you know what Question you are trying to answer. After this everything falls into place.
Using the technique outlined above, we will try to demonstrate your train of thought using the example of a memo drawn up by an accountant of one large company for the production of beverages.
Having delivered the products to customers, drivers send an invoice to the accounting department indicating the product code, date and volume of delivery. These invoices are the basis of the invoicing system, which is organized as follows:
One of the company's clients, a large fast food company (let's call it Company H), places large orders for the supply of drinks. To simplify your own accounting Company H wants to set up a system for tracking the invoices it receives on a daily basis. She wonders if she can keep the invoices, write them to a disk, calculate the total amount herself, and send the disk along with a receipt to the main office of the beverage company once a month.
In other words, it proposes the following system:
The chief accountant of a beverage manufacturing company was tasked with assessing the feasibility of such changes. But in my memo it does not answer the question posed, but only describes how such a system could work:
Company `N` asked us to consider the feasibility of introducing a new process for processing invoices based on data that would be stored on disk and transferred to us for entry into our accounting system. We have reviewed this proposal and made the following decision: 1. Our main requirement for accounting documents obtained from external sources, is that they contain the following details: * numbers of the parent company; * store numbers;* invoice numbers;
* amount of each invoice;
- *delivery dates for each invoice. For convenience, we could provide `N` with the number of their parent company and all of their store numbers that are included in our customer database. Company `N`, in turn, could enter this information into its system. 2. N Company will develop a program that will retrieve information about unpaid invoices from its accounts payable database. The final file will be in a format compatible with our payment accounting system. The data recorded on the disk will be sent to us along with the receipt. When our data processing department receives this disk, all information on invoices will be saved according to the details specified above.
- The end result
- there must be equality between the amount of invoices accepted and stored on disk and the amount indicated in the provided receipt. 3. At the last stage of the process, all data will be entered into our accounting system. Thus, using the invoice number, it will be possible to compare the invoice amount for shipped products and the payment amount.
- If you were in the place of the chief accountant and used the rules shown in Fig. 4, then we would do the following:
- Then you would imagine the reader saying, “Yes, I know that. So, what is next?" This would direct you to a statement regarding the Development of the Situation. (“You asked to evaluate whether these changes are worth making.”) Having defined the Question in this way, you see that it corresponds to the Answer. This means your main statement matches the reader's expectations.
- Once you've determined that it makes sense to make a change, you can move down to the next level and define a new reader question. ("Why?")
In response to the question “Why?” reasons are always listed. These will be all the ideas of the Main Level:
- We will receive the information we need.
- We will be able to improve liquidity.
- We will be able to reduce the amount of work we do.
- Having established that all the reasons follow a logical order, you can go down another level and figure out what needs to be said in support of each of them. However, if the document is small, you don’t have to do this in the introduction, but restore your reasoning when writing each section.
Rice. 6. The question posed is answered directly
As you can see, we were able to identify information directly related to the reader's question. This helps to concentrate on the question and answer it completely, and not partially, as in original example. And of course, this method of presentation allows you to understand the meaning of the document without unnecessary difficulties.
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