Dancing to someone else’s tune

I love my job.
That’s something I feel very fortunate to be able to say and in no small part that’s down to leaping that leap of faith and trusting there was a path out there. Somewhere.
It took a bit of finding but thanks to multiple strands weaving their magic carpet threads, I found the right combination of both circumstance and people.
Here I am.
I’m on a train returning from the City, with a day of one to one coaching successfully done and more to come tomorrow. There’s a lot to cover in 2 days and the material’s dry enough at the best of times. So with an exam to top it all off on Wednesday, the pressure is firmly on my client. Top bloke by the way.
According to those in the know, including him, I’ve done well to keep him engaged for the full day. Apparently that’s a pretty difficult task. It’s a good job no-one told me, I might have found it difficult too, just to carry on the tradition.
The trick is to provide as much of that engagement in a language that reflects the soundtrack of his world, not mine. After all, I already know it, so what’s the point of regurgitating tricky information in a way that only makes sense to me?
The clues were everywhere. Office decor, his demeanor, the way he spoke, the language he used. The signed music posters, guitar cases and desktop PC speakers were the final  confirmation, as if confirmation were needed.
Introduce the source material so the theme plays out loud and clear. One sound bite at a time. Check that he hears what’s said and it sounds OK to him. Does it ring true? Can he replay it back to me? Only bring in the new layers of information when he can work it in harmony with what he’s already heard.
In short, whereas I would have painted the detail that fits into the picture, (if you see what I mean), I listened to what he was hearing and once I’d found the right notes, we danced the day to his tune.