Your audience isn’t stupid. They are distracted.

12 February 2026

𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗽𝗶𝗱.  𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆'𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱. TV scriptwriters are being told to simplify plots 🎬. Not because viewers can’t follow complexity - but because most are watching with a 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯 in their hand.

Attention is being competed for constantly.

You might wish that wasn’t true.
You might pride yourself on being “fully present.”
And if that’s genuinely you, I commend you 👏. Good on you.

But it isn't the norm.

And trends like this are contagious. If reduced attention is shaping one part of our lives, it’s almost guaranteed to shape the rest.  Including how we show up at work 💼

I see this every week.

Smart people.
Important messages.
Great ideas.

And yet… they don’t land ❌

Not because the message is wrong - but because it’s too hard for the listener.

Too much context 🧩
Too many threads 🧵
Too much work required from the recipient 🏋️‍♂️

When attention is scarce, 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝘀 🎯

Those who don’t adapt?

They lose the deal.
Miss the promotion.
Get overlooked in interviews.

And it shows up everywhere:

👉 Pitching to a client
👉 Interviewing for a role
👉 Making the case for investment
👉 Influencing senior execs or boards
👉 Trying to get your voice heard internally

This is why frameworks such as the 𝘗𝘺𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘥 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦 and 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘚𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘬 exist.

Not to “dumb things down”.  But to help important ideas land in a distracted world.

It’s about clarity.  𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹.

Written by Jonathan Stern
ICF Certified Coach | Gallup CliftonStrengths Certified | Former MuleSoft ANZ Leader
I coach high-potential leaders and high-potential scale-ups.
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