Make charts that answer decisions: purpose, chart choice, honest axes, accessible color, dashboards vs slides, annotation, and chart crime fixes.
- 1 What is this chart for? A chart is a job, not decoration. Learn explore versus explain versus persuade so the next deck chart answers a real decision instead of filling a slide with color and empty overview titles. Scheduled · August 20, 2026
- 2 Chart chooser for real life Pick the chart for the question, not the template gallery. Use comparison, trend, composition, and distribution on purpose, plus a short never-do-this list for pies, 3D effects, and rainbow color chaos. Scheduled · August 21, 2026
- 3 Axes, scales, and honest baselines Axes decide whether a chart is honest. Learn baselines, truncated scales, dual-axis traps, and when a log scale helps so small differences stop looking like emergencies in the board pack. Scheduled · August 22, 2026
- 4 Color, labels, and accessibility Color and labels are accessibility decisions, not brand sprinkles. Build colorblind-safe charts with strong labels that still work in grayscale, on printouts, and on a phone at 7 a.m. Scheduled · August 23, 2026
- 5 Dashboards vs single slides Dashboards monitor change; single slides carry one decision. Learn the one-idea-per-view rule, a practical declutter checklist, and a worked redesign that splits a busy ops page into a monitor layout plus a clear leadership slide. Scheduled · August 24, 2026
- 6 The annotation habit Annotation turns honest charts into messages people can retell without your voiceover. Learn claim titles, focused callouts, reference lines, trust footnotes, and a clear so-what line that states the action, risk, choice, or watch rule. Scheduled · August 25, 2026
- 7 Common chart crimes (and fixes) Common chart crimes and how to fix them: pie overload, 3D distortion, dual-axis tricks, rainbow heatmaps, and silent definitions. Close Charts that make sense with a five-minute audit and a full recap of Parts 1 through 7. Scheduled · August 26, 2026