Godin’s Silly Rules for Great Graphs

Seth Godin invited a reaction last week when he ventured into unfamiliar territory by publishing a blog post entitled “The three laws of great graphs.”

1. One story
2. No bar charts
3. Motion

He was apparently engaging in a bit of hyperbole—a statement that is intentionally exaggerated for the purpose of making a point—when he listed as one of his rules: “No bar charts.” When Jesus made use of hyperbole to warn that great wealth can lead to corruption—”It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven”—I suspect most listeners understood that he was using an exaggerated analogy to make his point. Godin’s spare but sweeping statement, “No bar charts,” however, runs the risk of being taken literally by many who struggle with data presentation, and have an undiscerning appetite for simplistic rules.

Read More