Charting a Course
June 30, 2024
One of the …ahem… “joys” of visiting a foreign country, whose language is not your own, is trying to communicate.
My French is, I would say…pretty good. I had formal instruction from Grade 5, including a summer of French immersion in Trois Riverières when I was 18. To top it off, for the past two decades, Richard and I have spent most of our vacations in France, so at least once a year, I get to practice.
And, despite not thinking about French for months at a time, my vocabulary is also pretty good. When back in France, I feel fairly confident of my ability to reach into the vault for the correct word.
However, that confidence can be a dangerous thing. I tend to think I know the right word when in fact, I’m often completely wrong. (If you read the March 2024 issue of The Clarity Chronicles, you might recall my brother-in-law Frank’s assessment about the Davis family: “Often wrong. Never uncertain.”)
Let me illustrate. On our recent trip to France, I found myself in a grocery store, traversing the aisles over and over again, trying to find…. matches. We had rented a house with plenty of candles but nary a match in sight. By the time I had significantly contributed to my daily step count in said grocery store, I decided to seek help from a fellow shopper.
“Bonjour madame,” I began, as I approached a woman in the dairy aisle. “Un petit question, s’il vous plaît.”
Note, that in France you never just launch in with your question or request. It’s necessary to have a polite little intro, to prime the social pump as it were, for the exchange that is about to take place. To do otherwise is considered rude and tends to produce a correspondingly rude effect. (Consider yourself warned!)
But I needn’t have feared. Having followed correct French conversational protocol, I was met with a friendly smile and an encouraging, “Oui?”
Without thinking, I launched in with authoritative gusto. “Savez-vous ou es les feuilles?”
The woman looked at me blankly. Clearly, she had not found matches at this grocery store either.
“Feuilles,” I repeated, albeit a little more tentatively this time.
This was met by another blank stare, as well as a furrowed brow and a slight shaking of the head. But—good news for me—my fellow shopper wasn’t walking away. She definitely seemed keen to help, so onward I went, while at the same time astutely recognizing that a change of tactic would be required.
Now, at this point, you are likely thinking, Charlotte whipped out her phone and Googled the French word for matches. Mais non! That would have been too easy. Moi, I opted for the 19th century approach. Charades. (Which, you might note is a French word. Perfect.)
Don’t ask me why, but my first thought was to demonstrate to the woman that I was lighting a BBQ. This proved difficult because I didn’t think to act out lighting the BBQ with a match, but rather with one of those electronic stick lighter things. Un peu compliqué, as the French are fond of saying…
No surprise – more blank stares.
Then I had a stroke of genius. I gestured that I was lighting a cigarette. When in France…
“Allumettes!” the woman cried triumphantly, and in a matter of seconds, she turned on her heels and led me two aisles over where there was a shelf positively overflowing with matches. We shared a laugh – “Mon dieu,” I said apologetically, “J’ai eu le mauvais mot.” I had the wrong word.
I can’t imagine what on earth was going through the woman’s mind when I first asked my question. It turns out “feuilles” has absolutely nothing to do with matches. It means “leaves.”
Of course, I thanked my new grocery story friend profusely for her help—merci bien—scooped up two boxes of matches and returned to the chateau feeling not altogether unpleased with myself. While it may have taken a bit of effort, I had, in the end, managed to accomplish my mission.
What is the lesson here? That it’s easier to act out lighting a cigarette than a BBQ? True…but in our everyday business lives, I can’t see much need for either charade.
The lesson is that communicating different types of information requires different types of presentation.
Don’t get me wrong. I love words. They are, after all, my bread and butter, my stock in trade, my raison d’être.
But even I have to admit, words are sometimes the inferior choice.
For example, a collection of logos will tell a reader who your clients are much faster and more engagingly than a bulleted list of names. An infographic can relay a heap of complicated, inter-related information much better and more memorably than pages and pages of narrative. And the right table can summarize data and/or allow a reader to compare options quicker and easier than a wordy explanation will ever do.
But when it comes to charts and graphs, you need to be thoughtful, for not all charts and graphs are created equal. It all depends on what you need to communicate.
To help you out, here’s a list of six common “data visualization” tools (aka “data viz” tools) and what they’re best suited for.
1. MAP
A map is an obvious choice to show any sort of location information, such as offices or projects across the country. Maps can also show trends or quantities. For example, if you have 20 projects in Vancouver and only five in Toronto, you might show the difference by placing a big circle around Vancouver and a smaller one around Toronto. (Vancouverites will no doubt like that idea!)
2. INDICATOR
Indicators show one thing. Clearly. Examples include big numbers, icons, a percentage. On their own, Indicators communicate raw data. Embellished with colour (say, red, green, yellow) or an arrow (upwards or downwards), an indicator can quickly tell a reader whether you are ahead, behind or on target (indicated by colour) or whether something has increased or decreased (indicated by arrows).
3. TABLE
While not particularly sexy, a table is a very useful way of summarizing a lot of data. The columns and lines of a simple table force you to present the data in an organized way, and this makes it easy for a reader to easily extract key information. Tables also allow readers to quickly compare different options.
4. PIE CHART
A pie chart is a common tool to show proportions—that is, how individual parts or values make up the whole of something. A pie chart shows percentages. A few tips: Make sure the total adds up to 100% (that may seem obvious, but we’ve all been known to make mistakes). Don’t use more than 6-7 segments (otherwise, the chart becomes crowded and unreadable). And, order the segments clockwise from largest to smallest starting at the top. (That saves the reader from having to figure out for themselves which segment is biggest.)
5. LINE CHART
A line chart is a straightforward way to show trends, changes, or progress over time. It can be as simple as one line (to show the trend of a single thing), or it can include a few lines to allow you to compare a number of things at once. As with pie charts, make sure you don’t go overboard. Too many lines, and your chart will end up looking more like a topographic map! (Needless to say, not what we’re aiming for.)
6. COLUMN AND BAR CHART
A column chart displays different values in a side-by-side comparison. Whereas a line chart communicates an overall trend over time, a column chart presents data in a more granular fashion. That same data could, in theory, be displayed in a table, but by using “columns,” you also give your reader a way to quickly compare the data.
As these little descriptions show, it’s crucial to think first about what you are trying to visually communicate. Once you’re clear about your purpose, then you can move on to select the chart or graph that best accomplishes your goal. If you do it the other way around, you’ll likely confuse or mislead your audience.
Or you’ll end up with leaves when what you really want is matches.
Remember this: Data visualization tools like maps, indicators, tables and charts can often be more effective in communicating information than words alone. Just make sure you understand the difference between each tool and choose the right one for your purpose.
Effective Communication