The Back of the Napkin (Expanded Edition): Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures

The first time I noticed Dan Roam's name and the title of this book was from his liner notes on the back of Ken Watanabe's book - Problem Solving 101 (also an excellent book on its own). I went curious since his liner notes there is quite different (instead of using words and sentences, he used hand-drawn images) and later on browsed his name thus stumbled upon his website ([...]). Impressed with the website contents (which practically is the glimpse what the book contains), I immediately take a decision to purchase this book in Indonesia (where I live) but failed due to no stock in any Indonesian bookstore. This book really changed my way of looking at things, perspectively speaking. It teaches me how to think in a more simple fashion. I am an in house lawyer of a multi-national company, dealing with complex problems everyday, raised by people from many different cultures and mother language to speak (and listen). This book really helps me in such a way I am now able to deliver improved and constructive advices by graphical and visual form - and I am talking about legal advices here! Read the first chapter and go forward and you will come back for more. This book never find dust on the top of my desk, functioning as my daily reference. It also help in my coaching to my subordinates too. First time I thought, well... problems now seemed easier to solve. Actually it is not. It was me (or all of us) who had not yet see the problems in a different perspective, instead to think more simple and efficiently. Previously I made a lot of presentations with zillions of slides with tons of boring descriptive sentences/words, but now everything been kept simple in just 3-4 slides - and GRAPHICAL. No more heavy and lengthy words in a legal presentation session - you cannot just imagine if you have not read this book. I have to admit that this book was my first attempt of online purchasing via Amazon (another kudos to Amazon for convincing me to come back and buy more for sure).

The idea of selling an idea using pictures is not new. The challenge is always on how to structure your thoughts. transform thoughts to pictures and at the same time being open for input from others. This book is a practical guide that addresses all of the challenges one may face. The book has contributed greatly my development in this area, and given me direction for further growth. The concept is easy to embrace in your daily life.

This is undoubtedly one of the best books un knowing, thinking, and sharing knowlege that I have ever had! The skills are easy to master, but they are high, high-leverage. They make difficult concepts easy to understand and even easier to explain.

If money or portability are your primary considerations, then get a used copy of the first edition, as it communicates the central ideas in an almost identical fashion and is easier to carry around. However, if a few more dollars and a slightly-bigger book don't bother you, consider buying this new edition, as it's subtly-revised diagrams and improved explanation of key brain science concepts make it easier to understand on the first read. For more detail on the differences between this and the previous edition, read on... Both books are hardcovers and much of the content (including, sadly, the Resources listed in the Appendix) is the same. However, there are a number of important differences between these editions: SIZE At 8.2 x 8 x 1.3 inches, it is bigger than the first edition, which clocked in at 7.1 x 7.1 x 1 inches. While this does allow for the pictures to be bigger and slightly easier to see, it also means a larger, oddly-shaped book to carry around. This only matters if, like me, you like to schlepp your favorite books around and carry them on the bus. PAGES & TEXT Includes more pages at 304 pages, rather than the previous edition's 278, making it a mere 0.2 pounds heavier. 10 of those additional 26 pages are the new "Appendix A: The Ten (and a Half) Commandments of Visual Thinking." This is a very useful set of 11 rules of thumb to keep in mind when applying Roam's visual thinking technique. Most, if not all, of these rules are mentioned elsewhere in the book, so don't let this appendix be your only reason for purchasing the newest edition. In addition, these 11 rules are summarized nicely in a slideshow elsewhere on the internet ([...]/visual_think_map/the-10-12-commandments-of-visual-thinking-the-lost-chapter-from-the-back-of-the-napkin). Nonetheless, it is helpful to have them laid out, visually, in one place. Another 8 pages are the new Foreword, which explains Roam's experience of visually attempting to sell the idea for this book to the publishers at Penguin. While interesting and a good example, it is also not a reason to buy this edition. COLOR & PICTURES Instead of just black text/pictures, red is now used to highlight chapter headings and subheadings, as well as help readers distinguish between parts of Roam's originally-all-black illustrations and diagrams. This is astonishingly helpful - as it is much easier to understand his diagrams at first glance. Given the table on page 66 (identical to that on page 72 in the first edition), it is no surprise that a small change in color makes it easier for our eyes to distinguish among the parts of his diagrams. In addition, he has added some additional sketches in the book to better visually explain some of his concepts. I was particularly impressed by his improvements to chapters 4 and 5 on how to look better and see sharper. Both his pictures and his text in this section have been revised to provide more clarity for potentially-confusing sections that are partially dependent on communicating a few key brain science concepts. His diagrams illustrating the 6 ways of seeing/showing are also a bit clearer than in the first edition. OUTLINE OF BOOK CONCEPTS For an outline of the major concepts in the book, see my blog post ([...]/blog/review-back-of-the-napkin-solving-problems-and-selling-ideas-with-pictures-expanded-edition-2009) for more details.

One of the reasons this book appealed to me (before I read it) was that it seemed to be promoting simplicity. How to simplify things using pictures. Because of this I had expected a very simple book. I figured each chapter would be 1, 2, 3 -DONE. Not quite... I was reminded that many times authors are pushed to "fluff" a book up as much as possible before a big publishing house will except it. These things never bothered me until I started reading books that were written for kindle-- where no fluff was added. That being said, I never finished the book-- stopped about halfway through. Quite honestly I became bored. What I did read was well written and very thorough. If this is a topic that interests you, you'll probably enjoy your time with this book.

4 effective frameworks based on brain science that embed insight and storytelling into analysis and the presentation of results

Using the principles of the book - keep it short. The book has 3 basic premises: (a) the RIGHT picture is worth a thousand words and (b) there are only a few basic picture types. Match the right picture to the right situation and you have powerful communications that can make the sale before losing the audience. The book does show you how to do this, and how to think about it. However, the book overthinks itself and could be better for following its own advice! Longer, more traditional review. Based perhaps on the simplicity of the title, some reviewers have expressed disappointment that this book does not provide a simple silver bullet than can turn chaos into strategic plans and market dominance, all in the space of a paper napkin. True, it does not do that. What it does provide is a bundle of silver bullets that attack specific problem types -- and then a whole bundle of "user's manuals", one for each type of bullet and each way you could use it, and that does create levels of complexity that defy the original premise. The book sets up the basic frameworks (the types of story that need to be told and the ways in which those can be depicted). The author then creates a matrix (codex) of those combinations - well, OK, we can live with that ... But then we add another level of elaboration for each of the axes of the matrix. That is where it gets pretty complicated in there. To some extent one wonders whether this extra throw-weight comes from an effort to create a "serious" book rather than "powerful business presentations for dummies". The parcel of extra pages actually are useful once you get past the point of saying "well, yeah" to the basic premises, and once you wade through them carefully and long enough. Of course that is the anti-thesis of the original idea! That could put you off the whole project, but it would also be a mistake. The book's themes and illustrations will definitely help you think about what message you are trying to sell to whom. In narrowing down your presentation to a few proven themes you will definitely force yourself to separate the essence from the "cool graphics" or the "tons to words to convince you that I really have spent a lot of time thinking about this". The truth is that if you have not convinced someone of your position, saying more of the same thing isn't going to convince them either; you need to say something that appeals to their understanding of the world. For the most part, a briefing is supposed to be short (hence "brief"), not a battle of attrition. You want a head-nod because people agree with you, not because they are going to sleep. The approaches laid out in this book will help you get positive buy-in rather than sleepy acquiescence, and in the end that will have lasting impacts. Buy it, use it. Use the principles and frameworks. As you get familiar with them, the additional drill-downs will become clearer.

I was looking all over for a book on how to use a whiteboard more effectively. I've found that in my workplace in silicon valley, everyone appreciates people who can use the whiteboard effectively to demonstrate ideas, track status or discuss problems. Interviews, meetings, trainings, demonstrations - you can express yourself so much better if you use a whiteboard. But information with some basic guidelines and a framework on how to draw was hard to come by - and almost all the folks I've worked with are no better at drawing or explaining themselves visually than I am. Then coincidently around the same, Dan Roam was invited in to give an hour long lecture at my company. I was quite fascinated when I watched the lecture- this guy really knew how to do it! As soon as I learned that he had books out there, i bought em all and I'm now half way through the first one. I really really like the way the book is structured and the examples he's used. Like any new skill one learns, you have to make it a point to practice - even copy the diagrams in the first few chapters that he uses to get you used to drawing. The layout and design of this book is very well done. You do feel like you're reading a book written by someone with a design background. The material is very lucid, non-academic and the examples are compelling. Will add more to the review once I've completed the book.

Me encanto el estilo de redacción del autor. El autor tiene una forma divertida de explicar su metodología y aplica muy bien los concepción con los gráficos. Las anécdotas son divertidas y aplicables. He comprado ya los tres libros porque me encanta la propuesta del autor.

To much blablabla...It did not reach my expectations. The core message is good but it takes forever to get to the point. The book is far from cut nicely, something I didn't care about, since I go for content.

I really liked the way this book is structured and the contents. If you can remember just one tool - the swiss army knife of visual thinking, then you basiclly remember the whole book, which makes it worth reading, innovative and entertaining.

Great book, I keep on buying it, giving it to my staff, then having to buy it again. Great communication skill set if you are drawing or even putting diagrams in PowerPoint.

The frameworks defined in the book are very simple, detailed, interesting and beautifully explained. If you want to develop a structured mindset for comprehensive evaluation of a problem and then pitch it. Go for it !!