Struggling with making data exciting in your slide deck? Data can be dynamic. Statistics can tell superb stories. Here’s The Formula:Start with facts. Add feelings. And you’ve got a data story. Let’s turn to the world of sports for a timely example. Let’s build a short story with data we have from the Washington Nationals path to the World Series. Here we go — stay with me to the end.Because business owners can apply the above formula, too. Data You Have Prior to Making it a Story (using MLB as example):- Winning percentages- Games played, wins and losses- Names and…

Scientific writing is hard to do well. There’s just no question about it. Clunky terminology, 6-letter acronyms with hyphens, latin terminology none of us learned, even if we took etymology in high school… the list goes on. But in a recent Wall Street Journal, I was hooked by an article about cancer. Instead of a wrinkled brow, I was nodding my head and drinking in the science-y prose. It’s an example of excellence in scientific writing, and it’s worth unpacking. It’s right here, and it’s called “The Saturday Essay.” BARDIC AND PRIESTLY VOICES:The job of any scientific speaker? It’s to…

This is a story about a founder who learned the “Investor Pitch as Story” model (IPAS) from Day 1 of her pitch journey – and how the opportunities, wins, and checks began to accumulate. Jen wrote her first company check to On Point. It felt like a gamble. Would it be worth it? She admits in the interview… “it was a hard check to write.” Now that she’s mastered this model, she has investors writing checks to fund TiLT (formerly Career Allies) into its next phase of growth. This is a story about how and why the Investor Pitch as…

I was about 7 rows back in a packed theatre the 2nd day this movie was out. It was one of the only times in recent memory the audience clapped at the end. Which was deserved. Here are some key takeaways, one being the unlikely suggestion that  we all need to be more like Queen in our public speaking endeavors – especially founders pitching investors. * Side note: I was floored that Hollywood made a PG-13 movie about Queen, and that it is in my view, legitimately PG-13. As many others have already suggested, I predict an Oscar Nomination for…

*editor’s note: This is a shift from regular On Point posts – although we do teach storytelling in a professional context – this is part of my story, and a fun, light-hearted and personal example. Enjoy. ———————————- On the morning of November 2, 2016, I was talking to my 4 kids in the car on the way to school. They ranged in age from 7 to 13. We were pretty giddy, and rightfully so. “So guys, it’s Game 7 tonight right? Well there’s a tradition that after sports teams win it all, they go back to the locker room and…