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Stuck? Diagrams Help.
When was the last time you felt stuck? Maybe it was because of a decision you were struggling to make, a complex topic you were trying to understand, or a project with so many moving parts that you felt somehow both motionless and emotionful.
There are obvious tools for when we are physically jaws of life, life rings, tug boats, and tow trucks, just to name a few. But what tool do we turn to when we feel this kind of emotionally stuck?
Diagrams are visual representations that help. Especially when we feel stuck. Like emotional tow trucks, diagrams have been helping people for hundreds of years across industries, fields, and cultures when they feel this kind of stuck. Their labels are as diverse as the contexts they charts, infographics, schemas, models, workflows, information visualizations, canvases, maps, figures, etc. but at their center diagrams are just shapes, lines and labels arranged to be helpful to someone. Even if that someone is the maker.
The doodle to work out a point you want to make in a meeting? Diagram. The simple map used to highlight where the birthday party will be next weekend? Diagram. The instruction manual used to put together that new who-see-ma-bob? Diagram. The visual your team used to get to that big goal? That’s right, it’s a diagram.
But wait!? If diagrams relate to that many paths, when are we actually taught how to diagram? And are we ever taught what it takes to make a diagram be good? For too many people, the answer is never and no. And I want to change that.
This book teaches you how to diagram. There are plenty of books cataloging and analyzing beautiful diagrams that helped someone or a group of someone’s who were stuck. And many books provide diagram templates or visualization methods that help in certain contexts and on specific types of problems. But there is a surprising lack of education on diagramming. Like where do you start? How do you know what to do first, next and last? And how do you know if what you are doing is working? This book aims to fix that.
There are obvious tools for when we are physically jaws of life, life rings, tug boats, and tow trucks, just to name a few. But what tool do we turn to when we feel this kind of emotionally stuck?
Diagrams are visual representations that help. Especially when we feel stuck. Like emotional tow trucks, diagrams have been helping people for hundreds of years across industries, fields, and cultures when they feel this kind of stuck. Their labels are as diverse as the contexts they charts, infographics, schemas, models, workflows, information visualizations, canvases, maps, figures, etc. but at their center diagrams are just shapes, lines and labels arranged to be helpful to someone. Even if that someone is the maker.
The doodle to work out a point you want to make in a meeting? Diagram. The simple map used to highlight where the birthday party will be next weekend? Diagram. The instruction manual used to put together that new who-see-ma-bob? Diagram. The visual your team used to get to that big goal? That’s right, it’s a diagram.
But wait!? If diagrams relate to that many paths, when are we actually taught how to diagram? And are we ever taught what it takes to make a diagram be good? For too many people, the answer is never and no. And I want to change that.
This book teaches you how to diagram. There are plenty of books cataloging and analyzing beautiful diagrams that helped someone or a group of someone’s who were stuck. And many books provide diagram templates or visualization methods that help in certain contexts and on specific types of problems. But there is a surprising lack of education on diagramming. Like where do you start? How do you know what to do first, next and last? And how do you know if what you are doing is working? This book aims to fix that.
- GenresDesignNonfiction
352 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 27, 2022
149 people are currently reading
305 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 21, 2022
I had high expectations for this book based on previous articles I've read by Abby Covert and the book did not disappoint. It is a practical, entertaining, and comprehensive book. I've got over 20 years experience bringing diagrams to work situations to help improve understanding, but no formal training in the elements of diagrams. This book was a treat for me to read, seeing best practices and pitfalls laid out before me while still being entertained. I can imagine that for someone who is an expert in diagrams they would still enjoy this book. It's organized so you can pick and choose sections and each area is heavily footnoted if you happen to be curious to learn more.
January 3, 2025
Shouldn’t I be using a diagram to review this book?
September 19, 2025
Really good content, well explained and comes with a few exercises.
Would recommend to anyone since I think this is an essential skill to learn.
Would recommend to anyone since I think this is an essential skill to learn.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews