tough crowds: how to build trust (and stay motivated)
Recently, I had the privilege of speaking alongside my fellow data storyteller and author Alex Velez at the Outlier Conference, an annual event organized by the Data Visualization Society. This article is adapted from the talk we delivered there.
Everyone who works with data has encountered difficult audiences from time to time. You know who we mean: people who challenge the data at every turn, for instance; or folks who are resistant to ideas that conflict with their own assumptions.
This can be both frustrating and disheartening, especially when we devote so much time (and our professional careers) to diligently and conscientiously analyzing and sharing insights we find in that data.
If you’ve felt this way, we empathize. We’d like to share two different approaches that we’ve found to be useful for breaking through this frustration and disappointment.
How to Bridge the Trust Gap
…because if we can’t reach people, the rest doesn’t matter. These techniques are useful for connecting with our audiences and convincing them to value what we have to offer.
In moments when trust is low and skepticism is high, data alone isn’t going to carry the day. It’s critical to step back and put yourself in your audience’s shoes. Instead of starting from your perspective, or the “data’s perspective,” lead with empathy. Demonstrate that you’ve thought about the people you’re presenting to, and the people you’re presenting about. If your data affects people, which it often does, then people belong at the center of how you frame it.
That doesn’t mean putting emotions ahead of facts—it means recognizing that emotions are part of the equation. Emotional intelligence matters, even when the data and the facts support your position. A little humanity goes a long way in helping people feel seen—and when someone feels seen, they’re more likely to listen.
As a presenter, making that connection with your audience is critical. Remember, though, that there may also be other trust gaps to address. Frequently, data conversations start from a place of disagreement: factions of people in the same room butting heads over competing beliefs and interpretations.
If we anticipate disharmony among our audience members, whether in their interests, beliefs, goals, or motivations, we can look for common ground. Scan the room and ask yourself, why are we all here? What do we all care about, even if we have different ways of showing it? More often than not, we can agree on basic values or goals—things like fairness, opportunity, and stability. If we root our stories in those shared values, we reduce defensiveness and create space for dialogue.
In some cases, we find ourselves presenting to folks who are skeptical of data as a rule, whether it’s rooted in a belief in the old “lies, damn lies, and statistics” cliché, or just the natural wariness that comes from having been burned by misleading or inaccurate analyses. An effective approach here is to combine the qualitative with the quantitative in your presentation—blend stats and story.
It should not be a surprise that a data storyteller at storytelling with data suggests this approach. But it’s true! We don’t have to choose between quantitative data and a compelling narrative. We need both. A story brings structure and meaning to our message, and reminds people that numbers aren’t the point—people are. (Or, in the example we used at the conference, people and dogs are…Alex shared a case study from our upcoming book about how dog owners make decisions about the kibble they buy.)
Story reminds us what matters, and data adds credibility. When we combine them, we make our communication engaging and memorable.
Still, even with the best intentions, we’re not always going to have perfect clarity. Sometimes the data is incomplete. Sometimes it contradicts itself. Trying to pretend otherwise does more harm than good. There’s power in admitting uncertainty. It shows maturity and builds trust. Yes, it’s important to be precise, but it’s more important to be transparent. Credibility is predicated on a long and unassailable track record of honesty, and that includes admitting the boundaries of our expertise.
Incidentally, during a panel discussion at the conference, three people were asked, “In the age of increasing use of AI, and more and more difficulty in assessing the provenance of the work we see, what makes you likely to trust a visualization?” Two of the three people answered, “If I know the person who created it,” and the third answered, “If they are transparent about their process and the source of their data.” Credibility, honesty, and transparency will be key factors in your future efforts to persuade audiences with data.
Four ways to bridge the trust gap: lead with empathy; find common ground among your audience’s factions; blend stories and stats for enhanced openness and engagement; and admit the limits of your expertise.
How to Keep Going
But let’s be honest with ourselves. Even when we connect. Even when we do everything “right,” it can still feel like we’re shouting into the wind. We’ve all had runs of weeks, months, or even years with intermittent positive feedback at best, and even rarer obvious wins. So how do you stay motivated?
For us, it starts with redefining what success looks like. Not every win is going to be big or obvious. Sometimes it’s a single moment of clarity—someone finally understanding a complex issue because of how you explained it. Sometimes it’s planting a seed that doesn’t sprout for weeks or months. That still counts. That’s still you making an impact.
It also helps to give yourself permission to celebrate slow progress. Be consistent, durable, and conscientious in your efforts. Sometimes the most valuable thing we can do is pause, take stock, and do one thing well. Repairing trust, building understanding—these things take time. And that’s okay. Slow progress is still better than no progress, and is far better than just giving up.
Remember, too, that not all impact is visible. Any room always has a few loud people in it, and it’s not uncommon that we overindex on responding to their opinions and reactions. Instead of focusing on them, speak to the quiet ones in the room. There’s always someone paying attention. Maybe they’re not the loudest voices, but they hear you just as clearly (if not more so) than the talkers. They see how you carry yourself, how you respond to questions, how you stand firm when you’re challenged. The behavior you model has an impact on people who may never tell you about it. But even in silence, they may be taking it all to heart and carrying it forward. That matters.
Through it all, though, the thing that can sustain you the most is finding and protecting what brings you joy in your work. For me, it’s speaking to a group of people, and seeing that spark in them when a messy idea finally clicks, or how they get excited when they realize during one of our workshops some specific way they can immediately and dramatically improve their day-to-day work products. For you, it might be something else: solving a challenging visual puzzle; mentoring a newer professional; hearing unexpected positive feedback; or getting buy-in on a meaningful initiative. Identifying, remembering, and cherishing those moments can sustain us through the moments when it feels like no one is listening to what we’re saying.
Techniques for staying motivated include: redefining success to include smaller victories; celebrating progress on a different time scale; focusing on the impact one has on the quieter people, rather than the loud ones; and identifying and protecting the aspects of your work that have always given you joy.
Keep Showing Up
Our role is to show up with clarity, empathy, and transparency—to help people make better decisions from data and drive positive change. Our daily actions need to reflect our commitment to this idea. Sometimes progress feels slow or invisible, but that is the nature of progress—it is neither predictable nor linear. Whether impact happens in the moment or months later, building trust is a long game. The way we communicate today shapes how others engage with data tomorrow—and that’s what makes the work worth doing.
