DATA Is Not Plural For ANECDOTE Greeting Card (blank inside)

Violence is not the answer.

(but it can be funny)

Old analyst’s joke: What’s the plural of anecdote? Data. The joke is bitterly funny because we hate that it’s so true.

Data scientists, six sigma black belts, statisticians, and industrial engineers will love receiving this card.

We don’t condone violence but this card will cause pain in the side from laughter and possible knee contusions from the slaps.

#IYKYK. If you don't know...

Human beings have told each other stories since we developed language. The best politicians have finely tuned story-telling talents. If you can spin a yarn, can keep a crowd’s attention. Mark Twain, Paul Harvey, and so on. We even have the most ostentatious, highfalutin term for these people: the raconteur.

Stories are fun but they are a low-reliability input for decision-making.

It turns out we humans carry with us loads of cognitive biases that cloud our decision-making, and our memories are wildly unreliable. You probably can’t recall the last two hundred commutes to the office, but you will never forget the time you almost hit a deer.

Black swan events, remembrances of extremes, outright whoppers. We all are susceptible to great stories well told.. Data and analysis should cut through all that. Data should be the bulwark defending against bias.

Not to get too romantic about it, but data should be the beautiful breeze that clears clouded thinking and all of its errors. Data and a bit of critical thinking should pry open closed minds.

Alas, stories often win. Storytelling, or spilling out anecdotes, is one of the primary means to undercut analytical thinking. No number of stories should stand against cold, hard data.

That was a lot of “should.”

We're "shoulding" all over storytelling. 

Hence this joke is so satisfying. We data lovers can commiserate about its underappreciated truth.

We in the process improvement biz adhere to the principle of data-driven decision making. Quality improvement people, op-ex experts, lean thinkers, six sigma black belts... We need data. We insist on it. You’re welcome to your own opinion but if your opinion is not built on a foundation of data, what’s supporting it? Gut? Dreaded passions? Anecdotes? Yikes.

Offered exclusively to QI Curiosities customers.

LIMITED TIME ONLY!

This product is made especially for you as soon as you place an order, which is why it takes us a bit longer to deliver it to you. Making products on demand instead of in bulk helps reduce overproduction, so thank you for making thoughtful purchasing decisions!

• Material: 14.77 oz/yd² (350 g/m²) paperboard
• Sizes: Small: 4″ × 6″ (101 × 152 mm)
• Product weight: Small: 0.39 oz (11 g)
• Toner-based printing
• Vibrant colors
• Comes with a complimentary envelope