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Visualization Tip: Use Sparklines to Show Trends in Technical Communications
Sparklines are a powerful visualization tool to convey trends and patterns quickly. Sparklines can be seamlessly integrated into text and...

JD Solomon
Dec 12, 20232 min read


Visualization Tip: Maximize Data or Drop the Graphic
The data-to-ink ratio is a helpful way to create powerful graphics. Simultaneously, your graphics also become more accessible. And if you...

JD Solomon
Dec 5, 20232 min read


Technical Communication Is ‘Easier to Read’ with These 5 Writing Tips
The "Easier to Read' series on writing tips is now complete. Technical professionals will gain an understanding of how social media has...

JD Solomon
Nov 21, 20232 min read


Language Barriers: What Is the Goal of Communication?
The first rule of communicating in English is to understand what the goal of communication is. That goal, very simply is… ‘To understand...

Jeff O'Dea
Nov 15, 20232 min read


Use Caution When Using Readability Formulas like Flesch Reading Ease
Readability formulas determine how easily a specific audience can understand a text. There are more than a dozen readability formulas,...

JD Solomon
Nov 8, 20233 min read


5 Visuals to Use with Caution When Communicating to Senior Management
Scatter diagrams, matrices, histograms, pie charts, and box and whiskers diagrams are included in "graphics to use with caution" when...

Lester Ray Moore
Oct 31, 20233 min read


Six Essential Visuals for Effective Technical Communication
Decision makers will give you about 10 minutes of attention. You do not have the time to explain complex visuals. Keep it concise with...

Lester Ray Moore
Oct 15, 20231 min read


Five Key Enablers for Engineers to Be Effective Communicators
These are the five key enablers for engineers to be effective communicators. Like a chain, these enablers are only as strong as the...

JD Solomon
Sep 20, 20233 min read


Three Reasons Group Effects Dominate Team Dynamics (and 6 things facilitators can do about it)
The dominance of group effects varies depending on the specific context and circumstances. However, negative group effects, like...

JD Solomon
Aug 14, 20233 min read


The First Step of Virtual Facilitation is Virtual Platform Training
COVID reminded even the most experienced facilitators that conducting all-virtual facilitation creates a dependency on the virtual...

JD Solomon
Aug 7, 20233 min read


Effective Communication: Treat Others as You Wish to Be Treated
Effective communication requires treating others the way you wish to be treated. Trusted Advisors Your duty is to provide all of the...

Lester Ray Moore
Aug 4, 20231 min read


Successful Problem Solving Requires Effective Communication
Difficult problems are ones where their solutions are unclear or hidden. Difficult problems are complex, which means having many parts...

Lester Ray Moore
Aug 1, 20231 min read


My Three Favorite Group Effects and How to Mitigate Poor Team Dynamics
Several group effects can arise when teams work through business issues. Synergist organizations work to mitigate poor group dynamics...

Lester Ray Moore
Jul 24, 20232 min read


Beware of Deception When Using Shapes for Data Visualization
Fortune gets it right! In its annual publication of Fortune 500 companies, Fortune correctly used two-dimensional shapes (circles) to...

JD Solomon
Jul 19, 20233 min read


FINESSE: Are Words the Most Powerful Drug Used by Mankind?
"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind" is attributed to Rudyard Kipling, although there is some debate over who...

Lester Ray Moore
Jul 15, 20232 min read


Storming, Norming, and Performing to Group Synergy
Groups go through different stages as they develop, and it's important to understand where a team stands in its maturity spectrum to...

Lester Ray Moore
Jul 10, 20232 min read


Communication: Are Tone and Body Language More Important than Content?
This quote says how you say something is important, but some people think what you say is just as important. They believe that both...

Lester Ray Moore
Jun 9, 20231 min read


Seven Helpful Observations on the FINESSE Fishbone Diagram
FINESSE is a cause-and-effect approach for effective communication when there are lots of complexity and uncertainty. FINESSE stands for...

Lester Ray Moore
May 23, 20232 min read


Some Thoughts on Internal Communications (and why PowerPoint is not used for big decisions)
My role is to discuss the foundation of internal communication. That can be peer-to-peer, department-to-department, senior management,...

JD Solomon
May 21, 20234 min read


Structure: How to Improve Business Presentations by Practicing without PowerPoint Slides
You have completed the final draft of your business presentation. Now it is time to practice, and practicing means pulling up the...

Lester Ray Moore
May 19, 20233 min read
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