Have you noticed that some sound ideas get bad publicity? Two I have in mind are outsourcing and free trade.

No doubt you could name others, but looking at these twoinitiatives helps us understand a communication challenge formany companies and not-for-profit organizations.

Free trade and outsourcing both produce a few (well, relatively few) big losers, and many (very many) small winners.

More specifically, free trade leads to big losses for arelatively small number of companies and their employees.Companies can go out of business or be forced to drasticallyrestructure; employees can lose their jobs. The adjustment pains they suffer are very real and very significant.

On the other hand, all consumers in a country that adopts freetrade are winners. In other words, just about everybody. Thegains for each person are small, yet, taken together those gainsfar outweigh the losses suffered by the losers. And the gainskeep paying dividends year after year.

The story is much the same for outsourcing. A few employees take a very big hit, losing their jobs. At the same time, though, alot of other employees get to keep their jobs because theircompanies become stronger. A few suffer for the many.

Which do you hear more about? You hear far more about the losers,of course. Why? Well, as a former news writer and announcer I cantell you that losers holler louder and longer. They actively seekmedia coverage. And that's not all: stories about layoffs have aninherent drama that stories about the preservation of jobs justcan't match.

In addition, small-scale winners often don't know they've won, how they've won, or what they've won, so they don't march inprotest or call news conferences. Add to that the generalprinciple that good news isn't big news.

What do you do if you face a decision leading to many smallwinners and a few big losers? First, hammer away at the context,at the circumstances that drive the decision. For example, don'tannounce to employees that a new piece of equipment that does thework of three people will make you more efficient. Rather,explain the competitive pressures that force greater efficiency,and the consequences of failing to meet those pressures.

Don't assume everyone shares your knowledge. Few stakeholdersunderstand the broader picture, and even if they could, thepressure of day-to-day events may keep them focused on just onepiece of it. It's essential to start with as few assumptions aspossible.

Communicate frequently: in advance, during, and afterward.Explain the problem, outline the options, list the decisioncriteria, announce the solution, and report on how well thesolution has worked. Or not worked, which becomes the newproblem.

You won't convince everyone your decision is the right one, butyou might convince enough people to make further progresspossible.

In summary, when a few people suffer big losses and many othersmake small gains, you can expect the losers to complain veryloudly, and the winners to say little or nothing. To deal with thesesituations, communicate frequently and carefully.

Robert F. Abbott writes and publishes Abbott's Communication Letter. If yousubscribe, you will receive, at no charge, communication tips that help you lead ormanage more effectively. You can get more information here: http://www.Communication-Newsletter.com