I sat beside a guy from the Ministry of Education in Singapore at a presentation in the US. I realised half way through that he was creating the most amazing visual map of the key points that was actually more attractive than what was being shown. When I quizzed him about it later, he turned out not to be an artist or designer, but said he had evolved this ability as a tactic to manage the vast amount of meetings he was forced to attend in his role. This presentation from sxsw 2010 on visual note-taking is the closest I have seen to these maps. It also has some handy sketching hints, and most of us have a range of meetings where we can practice taking notes visually.
Read this article by Mike Rohde which goes into detail into using sketching as a visual tool
Where else are visual skills important for researchers?
- Frameworks used in business presentations which need to be succinct and compelling for stakeholders
- Visually attractive flip charts in workshops to involve and focus participants
- Diagrams used when working alongside other agencies to illustrate and inspire
The presentation below is from Kate Rutter at Adaptive Path, and lists useful how to’s:
