I just got back from an Edward Tufte one day seminar yesterday. Below is just a transcription of my notebook. In the following weeks, I’ll highlight a few points. In the mean time, I suggest you attend a course if you can. It comes with four of his books. Otherwise, read them, they’re full of insightful thoughts.

• The long-term goal is to zero out the interface. It’s all about the content or subject matter.
• A good diagram should be read carefully as you would with a paragraph of words.
• Don’t pre-specify a method (e.g., don’t go in to a problem saying you’ll visualize it).
• Study maps, it uses lines, colors, words, and layers. No more putting boxes around words. It creates optical clutter.
• Supergraphics, or figures that contain many dimensions of data, allows the audience time to work with their own cognitive styles.
• Presentations should start with a high resolution data dump, a supergraphic.
• Use your own time for the audience to read your material. Don’t expect them to read it on their own time.
• Create a technical brief, rather than slides. It should be a Word document, or your preferred document editor. Hand this out ahead of time and give the audience time to read it. The presenter is then cross-examined.
• Create complete integration of information.
• Use sparklines. They can be inserted anywhere, particularly in text. Stop labeling everything figure, title, and caption. It’s just clutter.
• Don’t design to the lowest common denominator. Expect the best, not the worse, in your audience.
• Reports, graphs, and charts can have the level of complexity of the sports section in the newspaper.
• Find good examples and copy them.
• For non-fiction reports, mimic the tables in the sports section or the market data presented in newspapers. They’re proven.
• The job of the customer is not to design the product.
• Show mastery of detail. If you want clarity, add detail. It sound contrary but works.
• The point of an information display is to promote thinking.

“Knowing that ‘it can’t be done’ because you can recount each of the failed attempts in the last 20 years to solve the problem can be a boat anchor on insight and imagination. This not only effects individuals, but happens to companies as they age.”

–Steve Blank

As an analyst, I spend my days working with data, defining business requirements, calculating, pivot tables, graphs, and analytical work. With an underdeveloped right brain, I set out to figure ways to integrate my creative artistic abilities into my analytical work. It started out with a discussion with a friend over coffee about how she’s using her right brain and I’m using my left. We concluded that I should figure a creative outlet. With that, I went to Target and bought a classic Crayola 64 crayon box. It has yet to be used.

As a management consultant, I’m called upon to explain complex topics to executives and directors and to communicate results to the lay reader. My organic chemistry notes in undergrad were all pictures. I used a lot of picture to illustrate some convoluted concepts.

After stumbling upon a few websites through my regular blogs, I came across VizThink, a visual thinking community blog. After a few hours, I read all their posts and dug through each one.

• Dan Roam’s Back of the Napkin
• Dave Gray and Sunni Brown’s Gamestorming
• David Sibbet’s Visual Meetings
• Nancy Duarte’s Slide:ology and Resonate

I also ran out and bought things to help me practice my new skillset:

• Sketchbook Pro for Mac and iPad
• Wacom bamboo tablet
• Two whiteboard and two acrylic boards
• A lot of butcher paper and many sharpies

At first, my work products were terrible. My handwriting was awful and my drawings were terrible. But with all things, it just takes practice, practice, and more practice.

I’m not there yet. I’m still honing these skills.

In June, I’ll be attending Edward Tufte’s course on Presenting Data and Information. I hope to have him sign my iPad.

In September, I’m taking a course through The Grove International on Principles of Graphic Facilitation and Workplace Applications.

Are you a visual thinker or graphic facilitator? How did you get started? Who inspired yet?

Have you learned something completely outside of your field and applied it? How did you do it?

I’m a huge fan of Mark, today is a sad day. Rest in peace Mark, we love all the years with you on CNBC.

There’s something beautiful with producing analog hand crafted work. Something we take for granted with digital typography.

Letterpress from Naomie Ross on Vimeo.

XPLANE, a Dachis Group company just posted an amazing detailed piece on the process they took to gather salary data, normalize it, then turn it into a high impact explanation graphic. I find the steps were incredibly comprehensive and thoughtful to develop just one graphic.

This is not a car blog, but I like to feature companies that go above and beyond to build a relationship with its customers. In this edition, I’m proud to say I’m a lifetime customer of Griot’s Garage. I was introduced to Griot’s from a friend who’s a huge car cleaning fanatic. In every industry, there’s always someone that specializes in a very specific area. Griot’s specializes in car care and detailing, to the extreme. If there’s a care care and cleaning need, Griot’s has it. You know they really know their business when they have a bottle of dressing designed just for the inside of the wheel well.

Social Media Case Study

Griot’s is a great example of how to use social media to build relationships. They do it one at a time and they interact with their customers. Their twitter page isn’t about selling, it’s about building relationships and sharing their expert knowledge in care car. They also have a great sense of humor.

Case in point, I posted a tweet about how much I love Griot’s speedshine. It’s a multipurpose spray for cleaning, maintaining, and making sure your car shines. It comes with an amazingly soft microfiber cloth. I use it to wipe off bird poo and for periodic upkeep in between washes and waxing.

Griot’s responded back and put together a mockup of what a barrel of speedshine would look like. I’d like mine aged five years please.

Mike later sent me an email offering to send me a gallon of speedshine to top off my bottle. Of course, now I’m a huge fan of Griot’s and only recommend their products. Nothing touches my car, nor should yours. I bought a sampler kit to try out a range of their products. So far, I’m loving the Griot’s model for the following reasons:

1. Prices are very competitive. On a per ounce basis, Griot’s products are actually more economical than most products you find at car supply shops.
2. Reusable bottles. Griot’s sells high quality bottles and spray handles, but more importantly, refill kits. This is more economical in the long run and better for the environment.
3. They know cars. I’ve been to their Tacoma Washington flagship store. It’s a car owner’s paradise. More to come in a later post.

I’m starting to gain confidence in Griot’s products. They’re pretty serious about their craft and it shows from the showroom, to their website, to their social media team.

My next investment is going to be the famous random orbital. I plan on polishing and waxing everything in sight. Let me know if you’re interested in learning more and I’ll post a set of reviews on a range of their products.