Here's how you can simplify complex research findings for a non-technical audience.

How to discuss your research with a non-technical audience? 1- Identify the applicability of your research and how it can benefit the target audience. 2- Explain the key findings using the Feynman technique. 3- Provide context, similar examples, analogies, and cases to enhance the explanation. 4- Less is more: focus on the most important point rather than overwhelming with too much information. 5- Engage with the listener: ask if there are any questions, if they understood the topic, and never judge a question. 6- Use the rapport technique to empathize with the audience.

Basics. Focus on the basics first. Then move ahead with the complexities one by one. One cannot understand how to make sentences without prior knowledge of words and one cannot make words without prior knowledge of letters. Deep diving into the core and basics of the subject splits the entire subject into small pieces; each piece being simpler to understand.

Focus on what and why of your work. Leave the how part. Explain the bigger picture through "why" first, and then explain your work in context of the bigger picture with the "what". Distill all this to a few sentences. This is your core.

Let’s imagine we're experts in the complex science behind penicillin. We know all the details and chemical reactions. However, when talking to a non-technical audience, we can't use all that technical jargon because it would just confuse them. If we think simplifying our explanations is “dumbing things down,” it suggests we feel intellectually superior to our audience. Consider this: your audience may not know chemistry and biology, but they are likely experts in areas you aren’t familiar with. Instead of using the audience to showcase our expertise, we should view them as people we can help and serve by sharing our knowledge in an understandable way. It’s about making your material more accessible.

Extracting what is important for people to know is the first step in communicating complex research findings in non-technical language. This can be achieved by first making "highlights" of the information. Highlights are brief bullet points of less than 85 characters that communicate the most critical findings from a study. Highlights are great because they underscore the most important information. If findings can be shortened into small bursts of information, they are easier to simplify. You can also "work backwards" from other non-scientific articles about the same topic. See what types of words they use, and what are the "industry standards" for communicating those types of results. Focus on practical information people can use.

Simplifying complex research findings for a non-technical audience requires clear communication and the ability to distill key concepts into easily understandable language. Firstly, understand your audience. Understand the background and level of familiarity your audience has with the topic. Tailor your explanation accordingly, avoiding technical jargon . Secondly, use analogies. Draw parallels between complex concepts and familiar experiences to make them more understandable. Analogies can help bridge the gap between unfamiliar research topics and the everyday experiences of your audience.