Too often, when we didn’t take the course of action we should have, our reaction is ‘But, I didn’t know..’
This begs the question – would you have done it if you knew? And, if so, why don’t you eat healthy, sleep enough, meditate, and exercise every day? For all our love for data, there’s more evidence about the importance of these habits than ever before. And, yet, we’re not much healthier.
That’s because it isn’t ‘I didn’t know’ that matters but ‘I didn’t feel.’ It is emotion that changes behavior.
So, as we prepare our next presentation in our attempts to inspire change, let’s take out all those charts filled with data that exist to educate. Instead, let’s use the most important data to stir emotions. The presence of data in itself isn’t the boon we think it is. It is up to us to use the data we have to create a compelling story. The data is the supporting actor. And, we have access to a better supporting cast than ever before.
But, as it has been the case through history, it is the story that is the star.
A Learning a Day 