Wednesday 18 April 2012


Visual thinking essentials in black & white



BULB_ICO.jpg
There are two kinds of documentary films: those that show us something new, and those that show us new ways of looking at the old.
Ron Galloway creates films of the second type. Ron makes films that explore the more mundane realities of of modern life, like Wal-Mart, health care, and PowerPoint; things that are so familiar that we tend not to see them at all.
But we should. 1) Wal-Mart is big beyond comprehension. 2) Health care is (still) a mess. 3) Every single week TWO MILLION PowerPoints are presented.
I'm not sure which of those three is scarier, but I'm leaning towards the two million.
So is Ron. He recently asked me to appear in his newest film on that subject. Rethinking PowerPoint is a feature-length documentary exploring how to use the world's most pervasive business communications tool... better.
Here in black & white is an excerpt from my portion where I talk about:
  • Why vision is a good way to share.
  • Why talking and drawing is the best way to share.
  • Why lightbulbs over our heads are sexy.

BBB 
The Problem: We talk so much that we don’t think very well.
Help
Powerful as words are, we fool ourselves when we think our words alone can detect, describe, and defuse the multifaceted problems of today. They can’t – and that’s bad, because words have become our default thinking tool.
The Solution: This book offers a way out of blah-blah-blah. It’s called “Vivid Thinking.”
Pathmap
In my first book, The Back of the Napkin, I showed readers how to solve problems and sell ideas by drawing simple pictures. Now I prove that “vivid thinking” is even more powerful. This technique combines our verbal and visual minds so that we can think and learn more quickly, teach and inspire our colleagues, and enjoy and share ideas in a whole new way.
The Destination: We never have to look at blah-blah-blah the same way.
Bulb_heads
Through Vivid Thinking, we can make the most complicated subjects suddenly crystal clear. Whether trying to understand a Harvard Business School class, or what went down in the Conan versus Leno battle for late night TV, or what Einstein thought about relativity, “Vivid Thinking” provides a way to clarify anything.
Vivid_foxbird
Through dozens of guided examples, I show that anyone can apply the systematic “Vivid” approach, from left-brained types who hate to draw to right-brainers who hate to write. This isn’t just a book about improving communications, presentations, and ideation; it’s about removing the blah-blah-blah from your life for good.
Google Money
Despite the common perception, Google’s hundred of various projects don’t make a lot of money. It seems as if they have their hands in almost everything at one level or another, but the vast majority of their revenue comes from one place: ad sales.
This graphic takes a look at the revenue and how it all gets there. Some industries advertise on Google a ton more than others. These are those industries: