Category: #thinkery

Permission Slip

I was giving a public talk at a Life Sciences museum in Göttingen, Germany earlier this year. Over a hundred people turned up to hear about my journey with Visual Thinkery – A picture says a thousand words. People were encouraged to bring pen and paper and we had plenty on hand to give out…
Facepalm

I created this thinkery in June 2016. That’s probably all you need to know. <cough> Brexit <cough>
Insight, in sight, incite!

I was reminded this week whilst running a Visual Storytelling workshop with a group of Social Entrepreneurs in Lewisham, the power of insight. We all stand in a different place and see the world through our lens of previous experiences. What you see is all there is. It’s impossible to reach conclusions based on things…
We shape our tools

“How do you find a good name for your start-up?” someone asked. “Hold it lightly – don’t overthink it. In the beginning you don’t even know what it is. As it starts to take shape it will start telling you what it wants to be called”, I said, almost sounding like I knew what I…
Venerable Diagrams

I’m a fan of Edith Pritchett’s Venn Diagrams that appear in the Saturday Guardian (UK). Who would have thought Graphs could be laugh-out-loud funny? I think every visual has the potential to reach in and tickle a different armpit.
Meaningful online

“We need to build an app.” Maybe you do, and maybe you don’t. Take a few steps back and think about what would work best for your user. Chances are, whatever you create will need to be meaningful, bring value and be online. This Thinkery was captured live during a series of workshops by We Are…
The Wizard of Pollution

We often don’t associate plastic with the oil industry. But it’s a massive market, and one that Big Oil is pumping billions of dollars into. Plastic is a substance with magical properties alright, but when it’s washed up on a beach, we see the dark magic for what it is. This Thinkery was captured live…
Big Plastic

I hate single-use plastic, and how its waste is a problem pushed down to the consumer. It’s where legislation is so important. One of my biggest Brexit fears is that UK standards will lag behind the EU, because in a small capitalist state, big businesses call the shots. This is the path of least resistance,…
Big Oil Playbook

Our energy supplier Green has gone bust. So we’ve been automatically assigned as a new customer to… Shell. I’m not happy. This illustration was originally created for #breakfreefromplastic This Thinkery was captured live during a series of workshops by We Are Open, for Catalyst.
Keeping Afloat

It’s easier to keep your idea afloat when you can see others working to keep their ideas afloat too. You are not alone. (Phew!) This Thinkery was captured live during a series of workshops by We Are Open, for Catalyst.
It’s a bit of a problem…

“It isn’t that they can’t see the solution. It is that they can’t see the problem…” wrote G.K. Chesterton. Defining a problem statement can be a bit of a problem. This Thinkery was captured live during a series of workshops by We Are Open, for Catalyst.
If you really knew me…

You’d know that I once appeared on a TV comedy show in a police line-up of bald men… This is one of my favourite icebreakers. It gets people talking about themselves, but heading straight for the quirks (We’ve all got them!) By recording a visual landscape of these offhand intros, it becomes much easier to…