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A Dozen Ways to Improve Your Data Visualization Skills

What do you foresee happening in the future of data visualization? Promising changes are underway. You can move the field forward and further your own professional development at the same time. In this article, we’ll cover a dozen practical ideas for improving your data visualization skills.

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Developing a One-Page Annual Report

At a recent Board of Directors meeting: “I think I’ll design a one-page annual report for the Washington Evaluators!” What seems like a simple idea is in actuality many steps and drafts.

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The Best Visualization Tool of All Time

The best visualization tool of all time? It’s your brain. I’m giving you a rundown of just ten (out of the few million+) decisions your software program can’t make for you.

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Disaggregating with Small Multiples

Designing a small multiples layout that gives viewers the information they really care about – the disaggregated data for their particular company, city, organization, or school.

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Muted Grid Lines: Small Details, Big Difference

A few posts ago, I showed you this collage of area charts, which could be printed on 8.5 x 11 inch paper and used as a discussion starter at a meeting. Today I’m showing you why the muted grid lines work.

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Span Charts: When You’ve Only Got the Min and Max

A few months ago I received a copy of the Chronicle of Philanthropy. An article about nonprofit CEO salaries caught my eye because rather than displaying a mean or median, it displayed a range. A range! What a challenge. I had to figure out how to best visualize that range.

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