The Last Unicorn

Don't simply show your data--tell a story with it! Storytelling with Data teaches you the fundamentals of data visualization and how to communicate effectively with data. You'll discover the power of storytelling and the way to make data a pivotal point in your story. The lessons in this illuminative text are grounded in theory, but made accessible through numerous real-world examples--ready for immediate application to your next graph or presentation. Storytelling is not an inherent skill, especially when it comes to data visualization, and the tools at our disposal don't make it any easier. This book demonstrates how to go beyond conventional tools to reach the root of your data, and how to use your data to create an engaging, informative, compelling story. Specifically, you'll learn how to: Understand the importance of context and audience Determine the appropriate type of graph for your situation Recognize and eliminate the clutter clouding your information Direct your audience's attention to the most important parts of your data Think like a designer and utilize concepts of design in data visualization Leverage the power of storytelling to help your message resonate with your audience Together, the lessons in this book will help you turn your data into high impact visual stories that stick with your audience. Rid your world of ineffective graphs, one exploding 3D pie chart at a time. There is a story in your data-- Storytelling with Data will give you the skills and power to tell it! storytelling with data 3 contents 9 foreword 11 acknowledgments 13 about the author 15 introduction 17 Bad graphs are everywhere 17 We aren’t naturally good at storytelling with data 18 Who this book is written for 23 How I learned to tell stories with data 24 How you’ll learn to tell stories with data: 6 lessons 27 Illustrative examples span many industries 28 Lessons are not tool specific 29 How this book is organized 29 Chapter 1: the importance of context 30 Chapter 2: choosing an effective visual 30 Chapter 3: clutter is your enemy! 30 Chapter 4: focus your audience’s attention 31 Chapter 5: think like a designer 31 Chapter 6: dissecting model visuals 32 Chapter 7: lessons in storytelling 32 Chapter 8: pulling it all together 32 Chapter 9: case studies 33 Chapter 10: final thoughts 33 chapter one the importance of context 35 Exploratory vs. explanatory analysis 35 Who, what, and how 36 Who 37 Your audience 37 You 37 What 38 Action 38 Mechanism 39 Tone 42 How 42 Who, what, and how: illustrated by example 43 Consulting for context: questions to ask 44 The 3‐minute story & Big Idea 45 3‐minute story 46 Big Idea 46 Storyboarding 47 In closing 49 chapter two choosing an effective visual 51 Simple text 54 Tables 56 Heatmap 58 Graphs 59 Points 60 Scatterplot 60 Lines 61 Line graph 62 Slopegraph 63 Bars 66 Vertical bar chart 70 Stacked vertical bar chart 70 Waterfall chart 71 Horizontal bar chart 73 Stacked horizontal bar chart 74 Area 75 Other types of graphs 76 To be avoided 77 Pie charts are evil 77 Never use 3D 81 Secondary y‐axis: generally not a good idea 82 In closing 85 chapter three clutter is your enemy! 87 Cognitive load 87 Clutter 89 Gestalt principles of visual perception 90 Proximity 91 Similarity 92 Enclosure 93 Closure 94 Continuity 95 Connection 96 Lack of visual order 97 Alignment 98 White space 100 Non‐strategic use of contrast 102 Decluttering: step‐by‐step 106 1. Remove chart border 108 2. Remove gridlines 109 3. Remove data markers 110 4. Clean up axis labels 111 5. Label data directly 112 6. Leverage consistent color 113 In closing 114 chapter four focus your audience’s attention 115 You see with your brain 116 A brief lesson on memory 116 Iconic memory 117 Short‐term memory 117 Long‐term memory 118 Preattentive attributes signal where to look 118 Preattentive attributes in text 122 Preattentive attributes in graphs 125 Size 132 Color 133 Use color sparingly 134 Use color consistently 136 Design with colorblind in mind 137 Be thoughtful of tone that color conveys 138 Brand colors: to leverage or not to leverage? 139 Position on page 140 In closing 142 chapter five think like a designer 143 Affordances 144 Highlight the important stuff 145 Eliminate distractions 148 Create a clear visual hierarchy of information 151 Accessibility 154 Don’t overcomplicate 155 Text is your friend 157 Aesthetics 161 Acceptance 165 In closing 166 chapter six dissecting model visuals 167 Model visual #1: line graph 168 Model visual #2: annotated line graph with forecast 170 Model visual #3: 100% stacked bars 172 Model visual #4: leveraging positive and negative stacked bars 174 Model visual #5: horizontal stacked bars 177 In closing 178 chapter seven lessons in storytelling 181 The magic of story 182 Storytelling in plays 183 Storytelling and the cinema 184 Storytelling and the written word 186 Constructing the story 187 The beginning 187 The middle 189 The end 190 The narrative structure 191 Narrative flow: the order of your story 191 The spoken and written narrative 193 The power of repetition 195 Tactics to help ensure that your story is clear 197 Horizontal logic 197 Vertical logic 198 Reverse storyboarding 199 A fresh perspective 199 In closing 200 chapter eight pulling it all together 203 Lesson 1: understand the context 204 Lesson 2: choose an appropriate display 205 Lesson 3: eliminate clutter 209 Lesson 4: draw attention where you want your audience to focus 211 Lesson 5: think like a designer 213 Lesson 6: tell a story 215 In closing 220 chapter nine case studies 223 CASE STUDY 1: Color considerations with a dark background 224 CASE STUDY 2: Leveraging animation in the visuals you present 226 CASE STUDY 3: Logic in order 235 CASE STUDY 4: Strategies for avoiding the spaghetti graph 243 Emphasize one line at a time 245 Separate spatially 246 Combined approach 248 CASE STUDY 5: Alternatives to pies 250 Alternative #1: show the numbers directly 252 Alternative #2: simple bar graph 252 Alternative #3: 100% stacked horizontal bar graph 253 Alternative #4: slopegraph 254 In closing 256 chapter ten final thoughts 257 Where to go from here 258 Tip #1: learn your tools well 259 Tip #2: iterate and seek feedback 261 Tip #3: devote time to storytelling with data 262 Tip #4: seek inspiration through good examples 263 Tip #5: have fun and find your style 265 Building storytelling with data competency in your team or organization 266 Upskill everyone 267 Invest in an internal expert or two 268 Outsource 268 A combined approach 268 Recap: a quick look at all we’ve learned 269 In closing 271 bibliography 273 Index 277 EULA 284 Don't simply show your data—tell a story with it! Storytelling with Data teaches you the fundamentals of data visualization and how to communicate effectively with data. You'll discover the power of storytelling and the way to make data a pivotal point in your story. The lessons in this illuminative text are grounded in theory, but made accessible through numerous real-world examples—ready for immediate application to your next graph or presentation. Storytelling is not an inherent skill, especially when it comes to data visualization, and the tools at our disposal don't make it any easier. This book demonstrates how to go beyond conventional tools to reach the root of your data, and how to use your data to create an engaging, informative, compelling story. Specifically, you'll learn how to: Understand the importance of context and audience Determine the appropriate type of graph for your situation Recognize and eliminate the clutter clouding your information Direct your audience's attention to the most important parts of your data Think like a designer and utilize concepts of design in data visualization Leverage the power of storytelling to help your message resonate with your audience Together, the lessons in this book will help you turn your data into high impact visual stories that stick with your audience. Rid your world of ineffective graphs, one exploding 3D pie chart at a time. There is a story in your data— Storytelling with Data will give you the skills and power to tell it! Don't simply show your data tell a story with it! Storytelling with Data teaches you the fundamentals of data visualization and how to communicate effectively with data. You'll discover the power of storytelling and the way to make data a pivotal point in your story. The lessons in this illuminative text are grounded in theory, but made accessible through numerous real-world examples ready for immediate application to your next graph or presentation. Storytelling is not an inherent skill, especially when it comes to data visualization, and the tools at our disposal don't make it any easier. This book demonstrates how to go beyond conventional tools to reach the root of your data, and how to use your data to create an engaging, informative, compelling story. Specifically, you'll learn how Together, the lessons in this book will help you turn your data into high impact visual stories that stick with your audience. Rid your world of ineffective graphs, one exploding 3D pie chart at a time. There is a story in your data Storytelling with Data will give you the skills and power to tell it. Sometimes It Is Easy To Generate Charts And Graphs Look Fine To You, But Don't Clearly Communicate The Information That They Represent. Knaflic's Own Knack For Clarity Will Help You Sharpen Your Message When Using Data In Your Business Presentations. The Importance Of Context -- Choosing An Effective Visual -- Clutter Is Your Enemy! -- Focus Your Audience's Attention -- Think Like A Designer -- Dissecting Model Visuals -- Lessons In Storytelling -- Pulling It All Together -- Case Studies -- Final Thoughts. Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 257-259) And Index.