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April 13, 2006
What's wrong with narrative?
Have you noticed? Nobody writes anymore. Today, we communicate our big ideas with decks. Or foils. Or slides.
This isn't going to be an anti-PowerPoint rant. In fact, it's not going to be a rant at all. I just want to share one small observation.
You work really hard to bring your client--if you're lucky, your partner in crime, your friend, your colleague in great things--fantastic results. You hold a big meeting. Your client's there. His boss is there. In fact, his whole professional world is there. You present your big ideas. They LOVE them! You give your client the final deck, and the invoice.
Time passes.
A year down the road, only one element of the five you recommended is live. It cost more than it should have--largely because they ignored one of the key things you said that day--and it's under-delivering because the other four didn't elevate.
What happened? Could it be that nobody else could connect the dot points?
If your client can't connect the dots, maybe he'll call you in for a bit more work.
-But what if he leaves?
-What if implementation of the other four pillars falls to someone who didn't know you before the meeting that day?
-What if that really important caveat about launching one and four together didn't stick?
-More importantly, if the knowledge leaves the room in your head, whose fault is that really?
Honestly, what's wrong with narrative?
I know it's more work, but wouldn't it be nice to have a record of your work--and of the thinking behind the dot points--become an important part of intsitutional knowledge? Wouldn't it be great to know that the "big idea" would be a success so long as the client followed the clear, detailed road map you set out?
Just a thought. But if you do this I guarantee you'll be delighted. More importantly, your client will, too.
Posted by davidkippen at April 13, 2006 01:51 PM