July 17, 2025

The Technicals for Non-Techies

How to really understand any technical aspect for non technical people

There are only 2 sutras¹ you need to know to be able to really understand any technical thing. They are:

• Personify the parts

• Know their stories

Personifying helps you relate to each technical piece. Knowing their stories tells you all about them and makes it easy to understand and remember.

For example, in 2+3, let's think of the + as a guy who adds things together. Whoever surrounds him will get added up, like one of those match making uncles / aunties.

This was a very simplistic example, but it holds true for any technical topic. Only thing is, there might be many people and stories to know!

For e.g., if you want to understand how algebra works, it's basically just giving pet names to numbers and calculations. This allows us to calculate and prove other kinds of numbers like irrational numbers, etc.

You know, if you ask a techie (who is good at communication) to explain any technical concept, they will naturally follow these sutras. Maybe instead of blatantly personifying, they might give an example of an object or situation they know you will understand.

Happy clarity!