{"href":"http://player.captivate.fm/services/oembed?url=http%3A%2F%2Fplayer.captivate.fm%2Fepisode%2F2cf2934f-20c5-4ebd-8ccc-a04aa47f4e20","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Captivate.FM","provider_url":"https://www.captivate.fm","width":600,"height":200,"type":"rich","html":"","title":"83 \u2013 Cliff Atkinson \u2013 Beyond Bullet Points: The Art of Visual Storytelling","description":"In this episode of the Trial Lawyer Nation podcast, Michael sits down with consultant Cliff Atkinson. Cliff has worked with some of the top trial lawyers in the country to help them better tell their clients\u2019 stories. He and Michael discuss his path to success, what he\u2019s found effective for telling stories at trial, how to use the visual medium to help tell a story and where to find good visuals, the creative process, and how Zoom effects our ability to present information.\nCliff and Michael begin the episode with a look at Cliff\u2019s backstory. He shares how he first used PowerPoint for a business school project in the late 90\u2019s, where he added bullet pointed information into the slides like everyone else. A few years later while looking at some blank slides, he realized it could be SO much more than that. As he began writing articles about using PowerPoint as a creative medium, he began receiving attention. After consulting with General Electric\u2019s board, he was approached by Microsoft to write a book about using PowerPoint creatively, which became the bestseller \u201chttps://www.amazon.com/Cliff-Atkinson/e/B001I9RREY/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1 (Beyond Bullet Points)\u201d. After Mark Lanier read his book and couldn\u2019t put it down, he was brought in on his first case- Mark\u2019s legendary $253 million verdict against Vioxx, and the rest is history.\nMichael then digs deeper into what Cliff has found effective for telling our stories at trial. While Cliff is well-known for his PowerPoint prowess, he insists the story needs to be crafted before you can even THINK about the visuals. Once you have your story, the visuals ride on top of it, magnify it, and make it more powerful.\nMichael notes how it can be a challenge to distill the vast number of facts in a case into a story, and asks Cliff for his advice on how to craft a compelling story. He starts with finding the structure using a 3-part story tool template. It\u2019s about making it clear, concise, and powerful. But Cliff insists that it\u2019s NOT about dumbing it down for the jury, it\u2019s about distilling it down. Michael wholeheartedly agrees with this statement and adds that it\u2019s about trusting and respecting the jurors \u2013 a recurring theme in this podcast. Cliff then refers to a concept from the book \u201chttps://www.amazon.com/Made-Stick-Ideas-Survive-Others/dp/1400064287 (Made to Stick)\u201d called \u201cThe Curse of Knowledge.\u201d If you\u2019ve been working on something for a long time and you\u2019re explaining it to someone who hasn\u2019t seen it before, you\u2019re going to have a hard time looking at it like a beginner.\nCliff then begins to elaborate on how to incorporate the visual medium into your story. After sharing an inspiring example of this being done successfully in Mark Lanier\u2019s Vioxx trial, Cliff eloquently explains this verbiage is the infrastructure for the visual. Once you find your engaging thematic element, the visuals are easy to find. He likes to keep images simple and shares an example from a very complex financial case. He used a blue bucket to demonstrate the key facts of the case, and it simplified the case so well the jurors were asking about it after the case and it undoubtedly helped the attorney win. The key is to make the experience fun and entertaining for the jury.\nAfter a brief but insightful discussion of high tech vs. low tech visuals, Cliff highlights some of his favorite ways to find visuals. The largest source would be items you already have, including documents, PDFs, screen captures from Google Earth, and dashcam video. Once you have all of those visuals, you can do custom 3D constructions, or just do a Google image search to see what\u2019s out there. If you find something close to what you\u2019d like, you can easily hire a freelance graphic designer to create the image you want. Michael then shares some of his favorite low-budget visuals he\u2019s created in hi...","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/80de4db6-da18-41b8-9643-156c5d06db25/tln-logo-itunes-1400.jpg"}