you've never been better
Last month, in the spirit of spring, we asked you all to share some examples with us showing how you’ve grown as communicators of data. Thirty of you took us up on the challenge, and while the directions and scope of everyone’s growth differed, overall this month gave us the chance to highlight an important idea to keep in mind: no matter where you start on this path of self-development, with intentional practice and effort, everybody can, and does, improve.
Some changes we saw reflected in several submissions involved using color differently. Many of the “before” examples used lots of colors, which as a design choice is visually appealing and attention-getting, but sometimes leaves a viewer confused as to which part of the visualization they are meant to focus on; the “after” examples used color much more intentionally and specifically, as a tool for visually emphasizing the specific message inspired by the original data analysis.
Other folks’ revisions demonstrated the value of editing the scope of what we include in our visualizations. In these cases, the original versions included lots and lots of data—which we tend to do, as analysts, when we want to demonstrate the rigor of our work or establish our credibility through, well, volume. The “how we’ve grown” versions were much more focused: by leaving out much of the less-interesting information, folks made it easier for their viewers to see the key details, making the essential point of the communication obvious and unmistakable.
We urge you not only to check out everyone’s individual submissions this month, but also to keep in mind something common across all of them: everyone who participated this month was brave enough to share something of their own that, in hindsight, they felt needed improvement. Rather than hide that work, or delete it, they returned to it with fresh eyes; they applied their newly developed skills to the same task, and in the end were able to see just how far they’ve come. For this reason, and many others, we urge you to keep track of your work over time; maintain a portfolio that you can easily reference, and use it to remind yourself how we are always developing and improving.
Be proud of what you create today, and look back on it fondly in the future. Today, we are all the best we have ever been at communicating with data. Tomorrow, we’ll be even better. One of the best ways to do that is, of course, to continue to pratice and challenge yourself. Why not start with the current challenge around using the color red in a traditional (or non-traditional) way?
