{"id":713,"date":"2026-04-08T11:00:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T18:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/miriamposner.com\/classes\/dh150s26\/?page_id=713"},"modified":"2026-04-08T11:06:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T18:06:34","slug":"milestone-b-your-big-idea","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/miriamposner.com\/classes\/dh150s26\/assignments\/data-storytelling-project\/milestone-b-your-big-idea\/","title":{"rendered":"Milestone B: Your Big Idea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Due: Tuesday, May 5, in class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a big idea?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to presentation expert Nancy Duarte, “a big idea<\/em> is that one key message you want to communicate. It contains the impetus that compels the audience to set a new course with a new compass heading. Screenwriters call this the ‘controlling idea.’ It has also been called the gist, the take-away, the thesis statement, or the single unifying message” (Duarte 2010).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duarte explains that a big idea has three components:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. It must articulate your unique point of view.<\/strong> This means that a big idea is different from a topic, because it advances your group’s argument. For example, “homelessness” is a topic; “We must end homelessness by implementing a system of cash grants” is a big idea. Your big idea doesn’t need to be unique, but it should convey a point of view.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. It must convey what’s at stake.<\/strong> This gives your readers a compelling reason to take the action you recommend. For example: “Experts predict that without drastic intervention, homelessness in L.A. County will rise XX% by XXXX.”<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. It should be a complete sentence.<\/strong> This means that your big idea should contain a noun and a verb, helping your readers understand both what<\/em> actions need to take place and who<\/em> needs to act. For example: “L.A. County needs to drastically change the way it addresses homelessness in order to prevent a XX% rise by XXXX.”<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    You can read more about the big idea, including a list of examples, here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Getting to the big idea<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    How do you go from topic to big idea? Data storytelling expert Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic offers a series of questions designed to get you there. I’ve modeled this milestone on Knaflic’s Big Idea Worksheet<\/a> (Nussbaumer Knaflic 2019).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n

    In a document of some kind (Word or Google Docs are both fine), answer the following questions.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Project name:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Audience\n
        \n
      1. List the primary groups or individuals to whom you’ll be communicating.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. If you had to narrow that to a single person, who would that be?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. What does your audience care about?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      4. What action does your audience need to take?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      5. Benefits and risks\n
          \n
        1. What are the benefits if your audience acts in the way that you want them to?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        2. What are the risks if they do not?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        3. Form your big idea. It should articulate your point of view, convey what’s at stake, and be a complete (and single) sentence.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

          (You can read more about the Big Idea Worksheet, including some examples of completed worksheets, here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          And that’s it! Actually writing this document should be pretty trivial; the hard part will be doing the thinking required to develop your big idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          References<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

          Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic and Catherine Madden, Storytelling with Data: Let\u2019s Practice!<\/em>, 1st ed. (Wiley, 2019).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Nancy Duarte, Resonate: Present Visual Stories That Transform Audiences<\/em> (Wiley, 2010).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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