Here’s a moment every technical leader knows too well: you’re in a room full of executives, creatives, agents or business leaders — and you’re the only one who speaks “tech.” Maybe you’re a new CTO. Maybe you’re just the most technical person in the room. You have ideas that could solve real problems. But no one gets what you’re saying.

I’ve been there more times than I can count — at UTA and now as co-founder of SkaFld Studio. And here’s what I’ve learned the hard way:

It doesn’t matter if you’re right if no one understands you.

Your job isn’t just to solve complex problems. It’s to help others see how those solutions fit their world. Harvard Business Review backs this up: the best leaders use clear, resonant language to make complexity approachable. That requires more than just communication skills — it requires empathy, strategy, and what I call the Translator Mindset.

The instinct is to lead with jargon, credentials or cleverness. But that only creates distance. The Translator Mindset is about meeting people where they are, then guiding them somewhere new. Clarity matters more than ego. Connection matters more than correctness.

Related: How to Build and Sustain Deep, Meaningful Business Relationships (and Why It’s the Key to Long-Lasting Success)

When AI entered the boardroom

Perhaps no moment in my career tested my skills as a translator more than early 2023, when ChatGPT arrived and AI leapt from theoretical debates in tech circles to urgent discussions in boardrooms across every industry. At UTA, some of the most dedicated people in the world represent extraordinary creative talent. While technological advances have long shaped film, television and music, many in the C-suite saw ChatGPT as an existential threat to creativity itself. That uncertainty only deepened with the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes that followed months later.

The mandate was clear: stand with the talent UTA represents. But it was equally clear that we couldn’t be monolithic in our thinking. Generative AI carried the potential to reshape the industry in powerful ways. My role was to identify use cases, create a framework and communicate how this technology could revolutionize our organization. It offered the chance to streamline workflows, reduce tech debt and improve collaboration across departments that had long struggled to connect. For creatives, it promised to democratize the field — freeing more voices to tell more diverse stories by removing the burden of repetitive tasks.

Put simply, I had to translate what this tectonic shift meant: that while AI represented change, it could also bring progress. Most importantly, I needed to show agents and accountants alike how not to be left behind — while honoring the human talent on which UTA’s legacy is built.

Why tech initiatives really fail

Most tech ideas don’t fall apart because they’re flawed — they fail because they’re misunderstood.

I’ve watched engineers try to bury doubt with detail. But doubt isn’t rational. It’s emotional. Disruption often feels like displacement. Confusion can trigger fear. And fear doesn’t get solved by specs.

Empathy is a strategy. Before I pitch anything technical, I ask myself:

• What does this audience actually care about?
• Where might they feel threatened?
• How do I make them feel like co-owners of the solution?

In the early days of my career, I used jargon as a defense mechanism. It made me feel competent. But it didn’t build trust. I had to unlearn that habit and retrain myself to reframe, simplify and connect. Once I did, everything changed — not just for me, but for the people around me. I went from being a translator to being the person who helped everyone in the room align.

3 tools to help you communicate tech better

Whether you’re the only technologist in the room or just the one willing to speak up, your job is to create clarity, credibility, and connection. These tools will help:

1. Reframe, don’t repeat
When someone pushes back, don’t double down on detail. Reframe their concern in their own language. Make them feel heard — and then offer a clearer path forward.

2. Start with outcomes
Never open with the tech stack. Open with the result. Instead of “We’re using containerized microservices,” say “We’re cutting load times by 70% so fans don’t drop off before tipoff.”

3. Speak their language
Metaphors work. To a producer, AI is a script assistant. To a VC, it’s a high-frequency analyst. Familiar language lowers resistance and builds buy-in.

Related: 14 Proven Ways to Improve Your Communication Skills

You’re the bridge

You’re not in the room to explain code. You’re there to turn potential into progress — to connect software with story, abstraction with action and fear with adoption.

That’s leadership. Done well, it builds momentum, earns trust, and drives real change.

And it starts not with speaking louder — but with being understood.