You have aspirations of your research making an impact beyond journal H-index and impact factor, but you’re stuck on a fundamental question: What’s the best approach for sharing research beyond academia?
The question is fundamentally flawed. There is no best approach. But there is the best approach that works for YOU.
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Instead of abstract advice, this guide uses writing prompts to help you discover your unique path for sharing research beyond academia. The key is finding the intersection between your natural communication strengths and where your intended audience actually consumes information.
Not every prompt will be relevant to your specific research area or personal situation—skip the ones that don’t apply and focus on those that resonate with your work and goals. Grab a notebook and work through the prompts that feel useful to you. The act of writing will reveal insights about your communication approach that thinking alone won’t uncover.
Writing Prompt Set 1: Clarifying Your Vision for Sharing Research Beyond Academia
Start by getting crystal clear on what you want your research communication to achieve and who you want to reach.
Your Research Impact Story
Imagine it’s 3 years from now, and your research has help make the change you hoped for (congrats, btw). Write the story of what happened.
- Who was involved in making this change happen?
- What specific changes occurred?
- How did people discover and use your work?
- What organizations or individuals played key roles?
- What conversations or events led to the impact?
The People Who Matter
Think of 5-7 specific people (real or imagined) who might find your research relevant to their work or their lives.
- What’s their job title and where do they work, or what’s their role in their community?
- What challenges do they face in their daily work or personal life?
- What would make them stop and pay attention to information about your research topic?
- How do they currently try to solve problems related to your research area in their professional or personal context?
- What would success look like from their perspective?
Your Success Signals
Complete this sentence in as many ways as possible: “I’ll know my research has made an impact when…”
- What concrete outcomes would indicate success?
- What types of responses or engagement would excite you?
- How would you measure meaningful impact?
- What changes in your field or community would signal progress?
Writing Prompt Set 2: Discovering Your Communication DNA
Identify your natural communication strengths and the approaches that energize you, not drain you.
Your Greatest Hits
Think of three times you successfully explained your research to someone outside your field and felt energized by the interaction.
- Who was the person and what was the setting?
- What felt natural and exciting for you during the conversation?
- What questions did they ask that sparked good discussion?
- How did you know the communication was working?
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Your Communication Kryptonite
Write about communication experiences that drained your energy or felt awkward.
- What specifically felt uncomfortable about these situations?
- Was it the format, the audience, the setting, or the expectations?
- Did you feel pressure to oversimplify or unable to go deep enough?
- What communication styles or requirements clash with your personality?
- What patterns do you notice in situations that don’t work for you?
Your Natural Teaching Style
Describe how you instinctively explain complex concepts when someone says “I don’t understand this part.”
- Do you tell stories, draw diagrams, or use analogies?
- Do you give step-by-step breakdowns or connect to current events?
- What methods feel most natural and effective for you?
- How do you typically help people grasp difficult ideas?
- What teaching or explaining experiences have you enjoyed most?
Writing Prompt Set 3: Mapping Your Audience’s World
Research how your target audience actually discovers, consumes, and shares information related to your research. This is crucial for effective sharing research beyond academia.
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Following the Trail
Pick one person from your target audience and write a detailed day-in-the-life story of how they discover information related to your research.
- What do they read over coffee or during breaks?
- Which websites, newsletters, or social media do they check regularly?
- When do they have time to learn new things?
- Where do they go when they need to solve a work problem?
- How does new information typically reach them?
The Trust Network
For the same person, explore who influences their decisions.
- Which colleagues do they ask for advice?
- What organizations, publications, or experts do they trust?
- How do new ideas typically spread in their field?
- Who are the connectors or influencers in their professional community?
- What sources would they consider credible and worth sharing?
Research Detective Work
Document what you discovered by investigating your target audience online and in their professional spaces.
- What did you find on LinkedIn profiles of people in their field?
- What events do they attend or talk about?
- Which publications do they share or comment on?
- What language do they use when discussing topics related to your research?
- What format of content do they seem to engage with most?
Writing Prompt Set 4: Finding Your Sweet Spot for Sharing Research Beyond Academia
Identify where your communication strengths align with your audience’s information habits for sharing research beyond academia.
The Overlap Analysis
Looking at your responses to previous prompts, explore where you see potential connections.
- Where do your natural communication strengths align with how your audience consumes information?
- What approaches would let you communicate in ways that energize you AND reach your audience where they actually are?
- Which of your successful communication experiences could be adapted for your target audience?
- What opportunities do you see to meet your audience in spaces they already trust?
The Compatibility Test
Choose your top 2-3 potential approaches and honestly assess their feasibility.
- Would this be sustainable for you over 6-12 months?
- Do you have the skills and resources needed, or could you develop them?
- Would this actually reach your intended audience effectively?
- What feels exciting versus overwhelming about each approach?
- Which approach has the strongest overlap between your abilities and your audience’s habits?
Your Experiment Design
Choose one approach to test for sharing research beyond academia first and create a specific plan.
- What exactly will you do to test this approach on a small scale?
- How will you know if it’s working?
- What will success look like in 3 months?
- What will you do if it doesn’t work as expected?
- Resources or support needed to give this a fair test?
Writing Prompt Set 5: Taking Action and Sharing Research Beyond Academia
Create a concrete plan for testing your chosen approach and learning as you go.
Related Post: How to Share Research Findings: 5 Steps to Turn Goals into Action
Your First Step
What’s the smallest possible first step you could take this week to test your chosen approach?
- What specific action will you take?
- What resources do you need to get started?
- How long will this first step take?
- What will you need to prepare beforehand?
Your Support System
Who could help you with this experiment and what kind of support do you need?
- Do you need someone to review your work or provide feedback?
- Who could introduce you to contacts or opportunities?
- What kind of accountability or encouragement would be helpful?
- Which colleagues or mentors could offer guidance?
Your Learning Plan
How will you capture and learn from this experiment?
- What will you pay attention to during your test?
- How will you know when to adjust your approach versus stick with it longer?
- What feedback will you seek and from whom?
- How will you document what works and what doesn’t?
Putting It All Together
Review what you’ve written across all these prompts to synthesize your research communication path.
Your Goals and Vision (Prompts Set 1):
- What change do you want your research to create?
- Who specifically do you want to engage with your work?
- How will you recognize success when it happens?
Your Communication Strengths (Prompts Set 2):
- What communication approaches energize you and feel natural?
- What situations or formats should you avoid?
- The teaching and explaining methods that work best for you?
Your Audience’s Information Ecosystem (Prompts Set 3):
- Where does your target audience actually discover information related to your research?
- Who influences their decisions and what sources do they trust?
- What communication formats and language resonate with them?
Your Strategic Sweet Spot (Prompt Set 4):
- Where do your strengths align with your audience’s habits?
- Which approach offers the best combination of sustainability for you and effectiveness with your audience?
- What’s your specific plan for testing this approach?
Your Action Plan (Prompts Set 5):
- What’s your first concrete step?
- What support do you need to succeed?
- How will you learn and adapt as you go?
The most effective approach to sharing research beyond academia is about finding the approach that works for your unique combination of research, strengths, and intended audience.
Your writing has revealed that path. Now it’s time to test it.
Next Steps
Ready to turn your insights into an action plan? Schedule a free strategy session to discuss how to move from reflection to concrete steps with your research communication goals.
