Today’s graphic novella is inspired by the concept of rejecting the null. I created a cartoon about the null hypothesis almost a decade ago. I still find the concept really useful in thinking about evaluation. There is incredible power and importance in the choice that gets made when we don’t choose to change. So that’s […]
Schrodinger’s Outcome
Today’s post is a little evaluation graphic novella inspired by Schrödinger’s cat. No cats, real or fictional, were harmed while creating this post. I’ll drop a plain text version at the bottom. Plain Text Version Schrodinger’s Outcome Imagine a nonprofit program. Let’s say a food pantry. The food pantry was created to provide free emergency […]
What are Social Objects? [Behind the Cartoon Podcast]
So I decided to try out podcasting. Today’s first ever episode is about Social Objects. Why? Because it basically covers the theory behind my cartooning. Show Notes: Just in case the embed above is not working, you can find the podcast by clicking here. Social Objects: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know! (2007 blog post […]
How do people read reports and just what is an F Pattern?
When I talk about report design there is always one message I make sure to deliver. People scan reports before they read reports (if they end up reading them at all). But what does that mean really? That’s what this post is about. We’ll walk through a couple of common reading patterns identified through eyetracking […]
How to build an online community of practice (8 Tips)
For a little over a year I have had the pleasure of designing and facilitating a specific public health program focused evaluation community of practice. I have had a great partner in this work and have learned a lot about virtual community building. Today’s post highlights just some of the tips I have learned through […]
How to Create Power Point Infographic Templates Using Canva
In the research and evaluation worlds where I tend to do most of my work, Microsoft Office reigns supreme. I have nothing against Word, PowerPoint, or Excel. But I just find some other tools are just easier to use for certain tasks (such as creating infographics). And while that’s fine when working independent, so much […]
What is an Infographic?
So let’s not overthink this one. Infographics are the result of asking graphic designers to illustrate data and other information. We can find examples across history of people mixing pictures and text to convey information. There is no singular style and an all encompassing definition is probably not all that useful. For me, infographics are […]
6 Report Design “Quick Fixes”
Imagine going to a fancy restaurant (pre-COVID). The dish you order is fantastically presented, it looks and smells phenomenal. It looks so delicious you consider taking a picture and sharing on your favorite social media account. But what would happen if you surrounded that dish with a grungy atmosphere and put it on a dirty […]
How to Create Report Moodboards in Canva
This is the second in a series of posts on data design in Canva. Today I’ll show you how to use Canva to create Moodboards. Have you ever watched an interior design show? There is a moment where the designer shows up with a board filled with colors, sketches, and pictures in order to present […]
What is UX Design? Cartoon Glossary
This is a series of posts providing quick overviews of important topics in research, evaluation, and design. Each post in this series will include at least 3 cartoons from my archives and at least 3 links to recommended resources. I only give quotes here and recommend that you follow the links below each quote for more […]