Storytelling with Data

storytelling with data
contents
foreword
acknowledgments
about the author
introduction
	Bad graphs are everywhere
	We aren’t naturally good at storytelling with data
	Who this book is written for
	How I learned to tell stories with data
	How you’ll learn to tell stories with data: 6 lessons
	Illustrative examples span many industries
	Lessons are not tool specific
	How this book is organized
		Chapter 1: the importance of context
		Chapter 2: choosing an effective visual
		Chapter 3: clutter is your enemy!
		Chapter 4: focus your audience’s attention
		Chapter 5: think like a designer
		Chapter 6: dissecting model visuals
		Chapter 7: lessons in storytelling
		Chapter 8: pulling it all together
		Chapter 9: case studies
		Chapter 10: final thoughts
chapter one the importance of context
	Exploratory vs. explanatory analysis
	Who, what, and how
	Who
		Your audience
		You
	What
		Action
		Mechanism
		Tone
	How
	Who, what, and how: illustrated by example
	Consulting for context: questions to ask
	The 3‐minute story & Big Idea
		3‐minute story
		Big Idea
	Storyboarding
	In closing
chapter two choosing an effective visual
	Simple text
	Tables
		Heatmap
	Graphs
	Points
		Scatterplot
	Lines
		Line graph
		Slopegraph
	Bars
		Vertical bar chart
		Stacked vertical bar chart
		Waterfall chart
		Horizontal bar chart
		Stacked horizontal bar chart
	Area
	Other types of graphs
	To be avoided
		Pie charts are evil
		Never use 3D
		Secondary y‐axis: generally not a good idea
	In closing
chapter three clutter is your enemy!
	Cognitive load
	Clutter
	Gestalt principles of visual perception
		Proximity
		Similarity
		Enclosure
		Closure
		Continuity
		Connection
	Lack of visual order
		Alignment
		White space
	Non‐strategic use of contrast
	Decluttering: step‐by‐step
		1. Remove chart border
		2. Remove gridlines
		3. Remove data markers
		4. Clean up axis labels
		5. Label data directly
		6. Leverage consistent color
	In closing
chapter four focus your audience’s attention
	You see with your brain
	A brief lesson on memory
		Iconic memory
		Short‐term memory
		Long‐term memory
	Preattentive attributes signal where to look
	Preattentive attributes in text
	Preattentive attributes in graphs
	Size
	Color
		Use color sparingly
		Use color consistently
		Design with colorblind in mind
		Be thoughtful of tone that color conveys
		Brand colors: to leverage or not to leverage?
	Position on page
	In closing
chapter five think like a designer
	Affordances
		Highlight the important stuff
		Eliminate distractions
		Create a clear visual hierarchy of information
	Accessibility
		Don’t overcomplicate
		Text is your friend
	Aesthetics
	Acceptance
	In closing
chapter six dissecting model visuals
	Model visual #1: line graph
	Model visual #2: annotated line graph with forecast
	Model visual #3: 100% stacked bars
	Model visual #4: leveraging positive and negative stacked bars
	Model visual #5: horizontal stacked bars
	In closing
chapter seven lessons in storytelling
	The magic of story
		Storytelling in plays
		Storytelling and the cinema
		Storytelling and the written word
	Constructing the story
		The beginning
		The middle
		The end
	The narrative structure
		Narrative flow: the order of your story
		The spoken and written narrative
	The power of repetition
	Tactics to help ensure that your story is clear
		Horizontal logic
		Vertical logic
		Reverse storyboarding
		A fresh perspective
	In closing
chapter eight pulling it all together
	Lesson 1: understand the context
	Lesson 2: choose an appropriate display
	Lesson 3: eliminate clutter
	Lesson 4: draw attention where you want your audience to focus
	Lesson 5: think like a designer
	Lesson 6: tell a story
	In closing
chapter nine case studies
	CASE STUDY 1: Color considerations with a dark background
	CASE STUDY 2: Leveraging animation in the visuals you present
	CASE STUDY 3: Logic in order
	CASE STUDY 4: Strategies for avoiding the spaghetti graph
		Emphasize one line at a time
		Separate spatially
		Combined approach
	CASE STUDY 5: Alternatives to pies
		Alternative #1: show the numbers directly
		Alternative #2: simple bar graph
		Alternative #3: 100% stacked horizontal bar graph
		Alternative #4: slopegraph
	In closing
chapter ten final thoughts
	Where to go from here
		Tip #1: learn your tools well
		Tip #2: iterate and seek feedback
		Tip #3: devote time to storytelling with data
		Tip #4: seek inspiration through good examples
		Tip #5: have fun and find your style
	Building storytelling with data competency in your team or organization
		Upskill everyone
		Invest in an internal expert or two
		Outsource
		A combined approach
	Recap: a quick look at all we’ve learned
	In closing
bibliography
Index
EULA
Copyright
Title Page
Dedication
Contents
Chapter 1: ‘I’m thinking’ – Oh, but are you?
Chapter 2: Renegade perception
Chapter 3: The Pushbacker sting
Chapter 4: ‘Covid’: The calculated catastrophe
Chapter 5: There is no ‘virus’
Chapter 6: Sequence of deceit
Chapter 7: War on your mind
Chapter 8: ‘Reframing’ insanity
Chapter 9: We must have it? So what is it?
Chapter 10: Human 2.0
Chapter 11: Who controls the Cult?
Chapter 12: Escaping Wetiko
Postscript
Appendix: Cowan-Kaufman-Morell Statement on Virus Isolation
Bibliography
Index