• Goals
• Describe accuracy.
• Be accurate in your messages when this is justified.
• Gage the accuracy of messages when you are in the sender role.

Accuracy (What)

A message is accurate when it presents an accurate view of reality; it describes things as they are (or were, or will be)

Accuracy extends on a continuum from not accurate to accurate.

Accuracy (Why)

• Essential in many professions (Engineering, medicine, journalism, accounting, law, ) for ethical reasons and for credibility reasons.

• So you can present accurate information to those you care about.

• Many actors (people and groups) use inaccurate information to persuade. Skill with accuracy checking minimizes how much you can be manipulated.

Accuracy (How To)

Principles

• Sometimes, accuracy isn’t the top priority—like when you’re building relationships, telling stories, or working with people who don’t need all the nuances. Sometimes, insisting on pinpoint accuracy can actually get in the way of connection, flow, or clarity.

• Balance the needs for accuracy with connection, flow, and clarity.

• Bias–which is an unjustified and often unfair positions for or against something–is also import to be aware of.

• Information can come from two places.

  • Primary research: Getting information directly from observations and measurements.
  • Secondary research: Getting information from other people and from pro

• Most information you receive will have problems with accuracy; accept this as “the ways things are” and commit to getting accurate informations when you want this outcome.

Framework (Sender Role)

To provide accurate information,

1. Get your information from multiple

   1. high quality sources
   2. observations and measurements

2. Triangulate: Find agreements between sources and direct methods

3. Craft your message in ways that lead to accuracy. Cite you sources and the describe the direct methods you used.

Tips

1. AI Assistants (ChatGPT, Gemini, CoPilot) are super useful.
   1. Suggested Prompt: Assess this text for accuracy.