teaching data storytelling

At SWD, our mission—to inspire positive change through the stories we tell with data—is one we share with professional educators, the schools and universities where they teach, and students at all stages of their academic journey. If you're an educator who is teaching from or would like to teach from our resources, please let us know so we can keep you informed!

While our shared interests have inspired a number of collaborations over the years (our team happily guest lectures when our schedules allow), our books have primarily been the mechanism through which we’ve reached the most students. More than 400 universities worldwide (and counting) use our resources as part of their curricula, with both instructors and students expressing their appreciation for the books’ straightforward content, practical application to real-world examples, and affordable price.

A sampling of universities teaching from the storytelling with data books

We are committed to helping educators teach their students how to drive positive change with data. If you’re assessing how you can incorporate the storytelling with data books as textbooks into your course, evaluation copies can be requested here.  If you’re already using them, we have some accompanying resources to support you in teaching.

• Real-world datasets

• Exercises and case studies

• Connections with instructors, students, and professionals

• Short-form videos

• Personalized support from the SWD team

You can find more details about these resources below. Are there other resources that you would find helpful? Complete this form to share your feedback and connect with the SWD team. We always enjoy hearing how instructors use the storytelling with data lessons. We’re eager to do what we can to help enable you and your students.

Real-world datasets

You are welcome to download the examples from the books containing data, graphs, and solutions and use them to teach (with proper attribution) from our books page. Most solutions are Excel-based, with select exercises demonstrated in other tools including Tableau, PowerBI, Python, R, Datawrapper, Flourish, Google Data Studio and more. All of the examples are anonymized from real organizations, giving your students insight into what they’ll encounter in the workplace.

Exercises and case studies

Many instructors create assignments using the exercise bank in the online SWD community. It’s free to sign up for this low-risk, supportive environment where the data, scenario and steps are provided with solutions. Each of these practice exercises focuses on a specific data storytelling skill that will have practical application in students’ careers, and is based on a real, de-identified industry scenario.

Connections with instructors, students, and professionals 

In the SWD community, you can engage in conversations with other educators to ask questions or share experiences, ask your students to weigh in on a topic of discussion, or hear from working professionals on practical applications of communication techniques.

Short-form videos

If you like sharing video examples of effective data storytelling, quick tips, tool tutorials and in-depth case studies as presented by Cole and the SWD team, subscribe to the SWD YouTube channel. 

Personalized support from the SWD team 

Need to brainstorm ideas for developing your course? Subscribe to premium for direct access to Cole and the SWD team through weekly office hours, our full video library and in regular virtual events where you can experience first-hand how the SWD team teaches lessons in a live, interactive setting. Subscribing to premium also gets you additional perks like exclusive content, early access to special events, discounts and more.

The newest book—storytelling with YOU

If you'd like to take your students beyond data, Cole’s latest book, storytelling with YOU, explains how to plan, create and deliver a stellar presentation that makes the audience want to listen and act. You can get sample content from the book now, in advance of its release in September 2022.

Thank you very much for your support. Here’s to driving positive change by instilling this important skill set in your students!

recommended reading: elevate the debate

Breaking news! We could not be more excited to announce that two of the authors of Elevate the Debate, Jon Schwabish and Bridget Lowell, will be joining us on Thursday, February 13 from 10-11am ET, for our very first live “let’s chat” session in the SWD community! Jon and Bridget will be answering your questions about the book, communications, the Urban Institute, data visualization, effective presentations, or anything else you’d like to talk about. You can visit the event page now and pre-submit your questions; then, mark your calendars for 10am ET Thursday for the live event. It’s going to be a fantastic day. See you then!

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Does this sound familiar? You have a project that you know is valuable for the world to hear about. Your findings, in the right hands, would drive genuine, positive change. You’ve worked hard on your research and analysis, you’ve put together a great product, polished it up, and after months or years, you publish it publicly...only to have it fall on deaf ears. For whatever reason, this valuable work just didn’t generate the response you expected and felt it deserved.

That is the challenge that Elevate the Debate, the new book from Jon Schwabish and his colleagues at the Urban Institute, intends to help us overcome. In today’s information-saturated world, it is not enough to simply publish our work and expect it to be heard and acted upon by the “right” people; we have to be strategic, thorough, and vigorous not only in our analysis and research, but in our communication strategy to ensure that our work succeeds in having an impact. 

For those of us lucky enough to work in an organization with a large and well-connected communications department, we may not need to master (or even familiarize ourselves with) every facet of promoting our projects. However, most of us are not that fortunate, and Elevate the Debate serves as an incredibly valuable resource in those situations where we might not even know where to begin when it comes to, say, conducting interviews with the meda, or crafting an appropriate social media strategy, or organizing a coordinated communications plan for a large-scale research effort.

A core principle of Elevate the Debate, which Schwabish talked about when he recently appeared on the storytelling with data podcast, is that in communicating research, we will (or should) leverage different media, each of which requires different levels of complexity and has a differently-sized audience.

As the audience size grows, the message we deliver should become simpler and simpler. At the same time, that simple message should include easy pathways to the more complete and detailed versions of the message. 

The majority of the book is broken up into chapters that address specific elements of this communication approach, including case studies and related additional resources. Schwabish himself writes the chapters on data visualization and creating more effective presentations, but for others he turns the reins over to different authors, each one covering a particular area of expertise. Bridget Lowell introduces the pyramid model and lays out the reasoning and logic behind Elevate the Debate’s recommended communication strategy. Amy Ellsbury and Amy Peake tackle the chapter about audience; in it, they explain how Urban Institute characterizes individuals in their audience, and how best to find and reach out to the people who should be in your audience, in order for your research to increase its impact. Kate Villarreal takes on the final chapter, about putting all of the various elements together for a successful strategic communications plan. There are other chapters about blogging (gaining confidence in writing one, and how to maximize the value of what you write), talking to the press (preparing for an interview and how to work with journalists in a mutually beneficial way), and using social media (from what platforms to focus on to how to balance your social media output content for optimal engagement).

Peppered throughout the book are checklists, worksheets, and easy-to-read pieces of advice that can be instantly adapted for use by anyone who has to communicate their analyses to an outside party—not just research institutes. While the processes described in Elevate the Debate are clearly designed by, and used by, people who are very comfortable and experienced in their particular roles in the overall communication plans, the book itself is obviously meant to be used by people who may have never had to write a professional Tweet, or answer a journalist’s questions on camera, or craft a presentation to give in front of a live audience. In a sense, it’s using its own system to communicate with us, the semi-technical public, by giving us an easy-to-apply introductory guide to all kinds of communication-shop tasks, and including additional resources for us to follow if we want more detailed information. 

In a time when it is easy to put almost anything in front of an audience and call it “information,” it is critical that well-researched, factually sound material is widely available, in the hands of people who want it, need it, and can make use of it. Elevate the Debate makes it clear that it is our responsibility to make sure our own research gets to where it needs to go, and then delivers an accessible, no-excuses blueprint for how to make it happen. 

Elevate the Debate is available now through Amazon, and at your local data-savvy bookseller.

You can visit the event page for our AMA with Jon and Bridget now, in our community conversations area, and join us in the same place on Thursday, February 13 at 10am ET to chat with Jon and Bridget.

recommended reading: Avoiding Data Pitfalls

If you work with data, you should read (and own!) this book. Conversational in tone and packed with relatable examples, author Ben Jones shares with us the pitfalls that he has fallen into or seen others trip over when working with data in an effort to spare those reading from making the same mistakes. Check out some of my favorite parts and see a sneak peek of what to expect in the related YouTube book review.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Ben about his new book and related topics, which we recorded and I invite you to listen in the latest episode of the podcast.

While in Seattle recently, Cole sat down with the author of recently published Avoiding Data Pitfalls, Ben Jones. They discuss missteps using data, why they are an expected part of our evolutionary process, and the role that human intuition plays in the analysis and synthesis of data. Listen also to Ben’s journey from engineer to Tableau to founder and CEO of Data Literacy, plus practical tips for interviewing your data, exploring its contours, and increasing data fluency for yourself and your team.

Listening time: 61:43 | Related links:

• Books by Ben: Avoiding Data Pitfalls, Communicating Data with Tableau

• Follow Ben: @dataremixed | dataremixed.com

• Learn more about Ben’s company, Data Literacy

• People mentioned: Alex Kerin, Andy Kirk, Anya A’Hearn, Catherine Madden, Ellie Fields, Michael Mixon, Nathan Yau, RJ Andrews, Robert Kosara, Ross Perez

the (second) book is here!

It’s publication day!

I am thrilled to share storytelling with data: Let’s Practice! with you. And I can’t wait to hear what you think.

Some books were released from the warehouse early, so many who preordered it have already received their copy. I love seeing the social media posts where people share their excitement. I very much hope this book will become a well-used and widely-shared resource for those wanting to hone skills or teach others how to communicate data.

If you don’t have your own copy yet, you can fix that via any of the following:
Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | BAM! | Wiley | order from your favorite local bookseller

Once you’ve had a chance to review, I welcome your feedback. You can offer it in official capacity for others to read as they weigh purchasing decisions, or leave me a comment here or on social media. Word of mouth is the best endorsement, so if you like the new book, please tell others about it!

Want to learn more? Read about and see sample content from Let’s Practice! or get a glimpse into the book creation process. We are also working hard on additional resources to empower people around the world to tell change-inspiring stories with data—stay tuned for more coming soon from SWD. In the meantime, I very much hope you enjoy Let’s Practice!

why didn't I learn this stuff in school?

At SWD, we have the good fortune to teach many people in their business setting. These are typically individuals already in their careers who are interested developing their skills.

Why didn’t I learn this stuff in school? This is a question we hear frequently and that’s occurred to me more than once over the years in relation to visualizing and communicating with data. Well, it didn’t use to exist. The good news is, that is changing: more and more universities are incorporating the development of data visualization skills and communicating with data into their curricula.

At SWD, we celebrate innovative educators—and the universities and institutions where they teach—who share our mission of creating better data storytellers. We happily guest lecture when possible, but the way we’ve reached many more students is through the book. More than 100 universities around the world have used storytelling with data as part of their curricula. Instructors laud it for the straightforward approach and practical business-based examples, plus it costs a fraction of the typical textbook.

“I teach data-driven storytelling and communication to undergraduate, Ph.D. students, MBAs, and executives. Across all of these, storytelling with data is my core textbook and in every class, students want more from Cole—particularly in the form of hands-on remakes. I'm thrilled that I can now add Let's Practice! to my courses. Packed with examples and practical strategies, this is a must-have resource for anyone who needs to convey data, or to teach this critical professional skill to others.”

—Steven Franconeri, Professor of Psychology, Director of the Cognitive Science Program and the Visual Thinking Lab at Northwestern University

Professor Franconeri was an early reviewer of my forthcoming book, storytelling with data: Let’s Practice!—which I am incredibly excited to now introduce broadly to university instructors. Read on to learn more about what you can expect and how to get your hands on some preview content.

Here are a few specific resources from Let’s Practice! that will be useful for those teaching:

The solved practice with Cole exercises can be assigned as reading and illustrate many more real scenarios, challenges, and examples (inspired by those encountered in our workshops) to aid in the understanding and application of storytelling with data lessons.

The unsolved practice on your own sections provide a plethora of exercises that can be used directly, mixed-and-matched, or modeled after for assignments, tests, and projects. All data and graphs are downloadable.

The discussion questions that conclude each chapter will also be useful to draw from for group or class conversations on topics related to applying storytelling with data lessons. For example, check out the let’s discuss exercise from Chapter 2 on choosing an effective visual (see more example content in our recent post).

Chapter 2: let’s discuss! | Knaflic, Cole. Storytelling With Data: Let’s Practice! Wiley, © 2019.

In the past week, we have reached out to a number of the universities that use storytelling with data to share sample content from the new book, Let’s Practice! If you are an educator who is interested in receiving a sneak peek of storytelling with data: Let's Practice!, complete this short form and we'll send you the materials right away. You can request an evaluation copy of the books to assess for use as a textbook in your courses (storytelling with data is available now via this link and Let’s Practice! will be published in October and an evaluation copy can be requested here).

We also frequently hear from students who were introduced to storytelling with data through their professor. If you’re a student who wants to make sure your instructor has early access to Let’s Practice!, complete this form to let us know who they are and we will let them know about this new offering.

"YES! Something more from Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic. I've been teaching with her first book, storytelling with data, heavily for the past three years and the new Let's Practice! is the ideal companion to use with my students and clients. Her ability to simplify the complex without 'dumbing down' the message is second to none. I am so glad this book is now available."

—JD Schramm, Lecturer at Stanford Graduate School of Business and author of forthcoming Communicate with Mastery: speak with conviction and write for impact

We always enjoy hearing from instructors on how they are using storytelling with data lessons and what we can do to help support. If you have ideas to share, please email us.

let's practice!

I am incredibly excited to announce the upcoming publication of storytelling with data: Let’s Practice! It’s possible you’ve heard about it, as I’ve posted sporadically on social media and recently started discussing it during podcasts and events. I’ve been living and breathing the process of creating and refining it for so long that it was surprising to realize that here—on the blog—I’ve actually not yet written about this project!

So here’s where I change that and give you the inside scoop: who it’s for, what to expect, and some sneak peeks inside.

Like my first book, Let’s Practice! is written for anyone who needs to communicate data. If you’re reading these words now, this likely includes you. I am a strong believer that there are no “experts” in this space: we can all become increasingly nuanced in how we visualize data and weave it into stories to help someone understand something in a new way and drive action. The key to doing so is to practice, iterate, get feedback, iterate some more, and learn from each process. That’s where this book comes in.

Or, well, “not a book,” as we’ve been referring to it in official places. Because it’s really not just a book. Used right, it can foster an immersive learning experience through which you can become—or teach others to be—a powerful data storyteller. The first six chapters are aligned with the core lessons from the original book: (1) understand the context, (2) choose an effective visual, (3) identify and eliminate clutter, (4) draw attention, (5) think like a designer, and (6) tell a story. Each chapter contains three sections of exercises:

• practice with Cole: exercises based on real-world examples posed for you to consider and solve, accompanied by detailed step-by-step illustration and explanation

• practice on your own: more exercises and thought-provoking questions for you to work through individually without prescribed solutions

• practice at work: thoughtful guidance and hands-on exercises for applying the lessons learned on the job, including practical instruction on when and how to solicit useful feedback and iterate to refine your work from acceptable to exceptional

These first six are followed by comprehensive chapters that pull everything together. Chapter 7 (“practice more with Cole”) contains full blown case studies that are posed and then solved to illustrate the holistic storytelling with data process. Chapter 8 (“practice more on your own”) contains similar but unsolved case studies (great for those teaching data storytelling to use directly or model after; more on this in an upcoming post). Chapter 9 (“practice more at work”) has guidance for applying the totality of lessons to projects faced on the job, plus facilitator guides, assessment rubrics, and more. Chapter 10 wraps everything up with some closing thoughts.

Each chapter begins with a short introduction of the topic, followed by a recap of the respective lesson from the first book. If you’ve read the first book, this recap will serve as a good reminder of the main topics. If you haven’t read the first book, there’s enough in the recap and exercises to fuel you. Catherine Madden worked magic, illustrating these recaps (among other elements throughout the book) in fantastic two-page spreads. Here’s an example from Chapter 5:

Chapter 5 SWD recap | Knaflic, Cole. Storytelling With Data: Let’s Practice! Wiley, © 2019.

Each chapter recap is followed by a sticky note summary of the exercises in the given chapter. For instance, here’s the outline for Chapter 2, which focuses on choosing an effective visual (plus a peek at Exercise 2.1!):

Chapter 2 outline | Knaflic, Cole. Storytelling With Data: Let’s Practice! Wiley, © 2019.

Much of the content was inspired by our storytelling with data workshops. One way this plays out is in the scenarios themselves. Because our workshops span many industries, so do the examples upon which I draw. Exercises navigate between different topics—from digital marketing to pet adoption to sales training—giving those reading and practicing a rich and varied set of situations to learn from while honing data storytelling skills. Another way this manifests is in the exercises themselves: they center around common questions raised and challenges faced that people communicate during or after a workshop.

For example, we sometimes get questions about using words together with graphs. Over time, I’ve encountered a ton of examples where this is not executed as well as it could be. Here’s the beginning of the solution to an exercise formulated to help individuals reflect on the many ways text and data can be visually connected:

Example partial solution | Knaflic, Cole. Storytelling With Data: Let’s Practice! Wiley, © 2019.

All of the data and graphs will be available for download. This means those practicing will have easy access to data to work with in the tool of their choice (the lessons themselves are tool-agnostic). Additionally, downloadable solutions (which will be provided in a number of tools) will be available for all practice with Cole exercises so those interested can both see what’s possible and the details of how they were created.

In total, Let’s Practice! contains more than 100 hands-on exercises and over 250 data visualizations. As you can imagine, putting words and graphs (and illustrations!) together on that scale was no small endeavor. Have you noticed how beautiful the 2-page spreads are above? Matt at Flight Design Co did tremendous work in this area, laying out the actual book (and being patient through multiple iterations in our collective attempt to make it perfect).

Numerous others helped behind the scenes, reviewing drafts, editing, providing feedback, and helping in all sorts of ways that we tend to overlook when we hold a book in our hands. I won’t overlook it with this project; I am extremely grateful to everyone who contributed. And I’m very excited to soon share it with you. There is a ton of value to be obtained by analytical work that is already being done that simply isn’t being communicated as effectively as it could be—I hope this book is another step towards changing that.

You’ll be seeing additional posts from us on topics related to the book in the coming weeks leading up to official October publication, so please stay tuned. I’d love for you to preorder your copy today (Amazon, B&N, BAM!, Porchlight, Wiley, or even better: place an order at your favorite local bookstore) and spread the word to others who will benefit from effective data storytelling!