Tip 704: Keeping the Visuals Simple

From the Communication Workshops: Keeping the Visuals Simple 

In the summer of 2009, when General Stanley McChrystal assumed command of American and International Security Forces in Afghanistan, the resident staff prepared briefings on every aspect of his new command.

In the intelligence (what we know about the opposition) briefing, the presenter punched this slide onto the screen: 

 McChrystal raised his hand. He stopped the briefing. He pointed to the screen and said, “When we understand that slide, we’ll have won the war.”

The room erupted in laughter.

A recent (last Wednesday) internet search for “Afghanistan PowerPoint slide” gained nearly two million—two million—hits. A visual that will live in history.

So What Do We Do? 

Consider the “5x5x5” (“five by five by five”) principle:  

No more than five lines of text.

No more than five words on a line.

No more than five columns displayed in a spreadsheet. 

Keep it simple. Keep your audience. Keep your credibility.

It’s that simple. 

Your visuals complement your presentation (or your text), they don’t give your presentation (or your text).

We love this stuff. We really do.