Do we have an understanding?

Okay, well... How often has this happened to you, either in real life, in a chat room, or even just on this site.

You go through hours of preparation and brainstorming to come up with and elaborate on an idea or your thoughts on an idea. Maybe even jot down little notes as to how you could better clarify your thoughts on this idea. And you finally get to present this idea, and the person or persons you present the idea to have no clue what you're talking about?

It seems to happen a lot. Now, there are, of course, all kinds of verbal clues that could let someone know what you're saying. "I'm saying blah blah blah" will pretty much clue anyone in as to what blah blah blah is and how blah blah blah is important and what you feel about blah blah blah.

But what are some nonverbal clues? Well, in person there is body language. If someone raises an eyebrow - you can pretty much guess that they are lost, giving you the cue to re-explain yourself before a question can even be asked.

But, how can we clarify what we're saying in a completely nonverbal forum, such as this blogging site? I've found that reading is a crucial skill to this site - but unfortunately, not very many people seem to be able to do that. Other than basic "nettiquette" - how can we explain ourselves on this forum and know that what we are saying is understood by our readers? How would we know that it is misunderstood?

The obvious answer would be that you'll know you're misunderstood when someone replies to your post. But, I've found that some people have read my post, and understood it clearly, but never said anything about it. Others read my post and were totally clueless and still never said anything about it. Sometimes it's because they agree with what they think I'm saying, and other times they disagree but they're so angry about it that they don't want to "waste their time" on me. Well, whatever. How can I really be sure I am being understood?

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