LISTEN TO THE EPISODE:

LET’S PRACTICE STORYTELLING WITH DATA WITH COLE KNAFLIC’S BOOK

Today’s guest is a woman who has had a formative impact on my journey and whose latest book is my new desktop Bible for data presentation.

Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic is the CEO and Founder of Storytelling with Data, a company providing workshops and presentations that teach the basics of data visualization and how to tell compelling stories with data through theory, practical application, and clearly articulated and demonstrated lessons.

She is the author of Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals and her newest book, Storytelling with Data: Let’s Practice.

She is also the host of the Storytelling With Data podcast and this year, her company launched a Storytelling with Data community, an online community where you can practice in a low risk setting.

The community is highly engaging and members have the opportunity to give and receive feedback and engage in conversations with others.

In this episode, Cole shares the wisdom of her book which is packed with real-world data examples, business scenarios, and brainstorming exercises.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn…

• How Cole’s passion for making meaning out of data came to be.


• All about Cole’s latest book, Storytelling with Data: Let’s Practice.


• The five-phase SWD storytelling model to nail your data stories every time


• How to apply classical narrative structure in a business context


• How to help your audience with transitions between the data they are familiar with and the data they need to know.

How to Keep Up with Cole:

• Twitter


• LinkedIn


• Storytelling with Data Blog

People, Blogs, and Resources Mentioned:

• Storytelling with Data: Let’s Practice by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic


• Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic


• Stephanie Evergreen.


• Catherine Madden, Illustrator


• Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences by Nancy Duarte


• Steve Wexler

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining me. Have some feedback you’d like to share, or a question for Cole? Leave a note in the comments below, and we’ll get back to you!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the left of the post.

If you liked what you heard, I would love if you could leave me a rating or review in iTunes. Ratings & reviews are extremely appreciated and very important in the rankings algorithm. The more ratings, the better chance of fellow practitioners getting to hear this helpful information!

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates and never miss a show.

A very, very special thank you to Cole for joining me this week. And as always, viz responsibly, my friends.

Do you have a burning question for Cole about how to turn your data into an impactful and actionable story?

Lea Pica: Happy days of holly. Lea Pica here. Today’s guest is one of my data storytelling idols and she’s back on the show to help you practice to make perfect. Let’s find out who’s closing out the year on the Present Beyond Measure Show, Episode 52.

Lea Pica: Hey guys, welcome to the 52nd episode of the Present Beyond Measure Show and the final show for 2019. Ehrmagerd, but don’t worry, it’s not over.

Lea Pica: I have another one really closely queued up for January. You’re gonna love it and you won’t have to wait for long. This is the only podcast at the intersection of presentation, data visualization, and digital analytics and marketing. This is the place to be if you’re ready to make maximum impact and create credibility and indispensability through your thoughtfully presented insights. So I’m really excited because I just signed on to be a speaker at the Observe Point Virtual Analytics Summit in January of 2020. I participated in this summit a few years ago and had an absolute blast. And I have to say it’s a really quality event. They get some incredible speakers in their lineup. And also, it’s completely remote. No need to book travel. No need to stand on line waiting for those cookies at the end during the networking break. So you don’t want to miss it. It’s totally free. And you can find all of the information at the link. Leapica.com/OS20. I will be speaking about my three pillars of presentation and enlightenment. So you don’t want to miss it. Can’t wait to see you there.

Lea Pica: So I just want to dive right in because this interview was mind-blowing. This is one of the people that has had a formative impact on my own journey as a teacher and trainer of data storytelling. And it was really exciting to have her back on the show talking all about her latest book, which has become my new desktop Bible for data presentation. Let’s not waste another moment. Let’s dive in.

Lea Pica: All right, guys. I’m so excited to finish off the year with one more incredible guest. She has a big thing for turning data into pictures and stories. And she’s the author of the wildly popular blog and bestselling book Storytelling with Data, A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals. It’s a book that I recommend to every single person I speak to, students and everything. So for nearly a decade, she and her team have delivered interactive learning sessions, sought after by data-minded individuals, companies and organizations all over the world. And she is a returning guest, having first appeared on this show in episode twenty-three. She has her own podcast, Storytelling with Data Podcast. She has an awesome monthly challenge, which you should absolutely check out and participate in. And she’s here today because she’s graciously returned to discuss her new practice book and my new desktop Bible. This thing is no joke, bible for a compelling data stories. And it’s called Storytelling with Data: Let’s practice. So please help me. Welcome back to the show. Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic.

Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic: Hi Lea, thanks for having me back.

Lea Pica: It’s my pleasure. All you have to do is watch your book and use it.

Lea Pica: So for anyone who may not have heard the first episode. I discovered you a few years ago through Stephanie Evergreen’s online course, and I followed you for years, and I was always drawn to your very simple and practical approach that didn’t feel dogmatic or extreme or judgmental. I really resonate with that. And you’ve made it into many of my workshop keynotes. And, you know, even this book has inspired some new thoughts around work. I’ve done like a flow graph. I’