OPENERS, PART 5: "Funny Story"
The Art of Applied Visual Thinking
The official newsletter of
Applied Visual Thinking SUPERHEROES.
Vol. 7 No. 23 November 13, 2026
OPENERS, PART 5:
"Funny Story…"
“What I meant was…”
Have you ever had a moment when someone looked at a finished project you've worked on together and said "What I meant was…" Everyone sat in the same meeting and heard the same words, yet ended up in very different places. Agreeing on the words is not the same as agreeing on the picture. For example:
Once upon a time, a client wanted an art space.
The community center had an empty room in the back, and the director wanted a place where people could make art. “Nothing fancy,” she said. “We’re on a shoestring.”
What the client pictured: Old folding tables covered in paint splatters, coffee cans full of brushes, a drying rack, and a sink. Total budget: about the cost of a good pizza party.
What the project manager pictured: A project, with ventilation, fire codes, a kiln, a 40-line budget spreadsheet, and a risk register with fourteen items.
What the design team pictured: A gallery, with white walls, track lighting, plush white carpet, and glass tables so the art would “float.” They left out the sink because it “would ruin the clean lines.”
What got delivered: A gorgeous white exhibition space where nobody was allowed to open a jar of paint. The director stood in the doorway in her paint-stained apron and said, “What I meant was… somewhere we can make a mess.”
Nobody in this story was wrong.
That’s the funny part, and also the painful part. Each person filled in the gaps with their own picture. The client pictured a messy, happy room. The PM pictured a plan. The team pictured a portfolio piece. Since nobody drew theirs, nobody noticed the difference until it was too late.
How a simple picture would have saved the project:
- The client sketches first. Two tables, a sink, and some paint splats. It takes thirty seconds and answers half the spec.
- The PM draws it back. “Is this it?” When the client sees a kiln, she says, “Oh my, no.” That saves thousands in remodeling.
- The team builds from the picture, not the paragraph. One look at those paint splats and nobody designs a showroom.
The magic isn’t in the drawing skill. It’s in getting the pictures out of everyone’s heads while they’re still cheap to fix.
Superhero Truth:
Projects rarely go sideways because people disagree. They go sideways because people think they agree.
Draw the picture BEFORE you start the project.
Homework
Pick a project you want to start, and give yourself 15 minutes.
- Draw your version of the finished result. Stick figures are welcome.
- Ask the stakeholder(s) to draw theirs.
- Put them side by side and star the differences.
- Talk about the stars before you begin.
When you draw what you mean, nobody has to say “what I meant was…”
Build the space they actually wanted.
If the art space story felt a little too familiar, AVT for PROJECT MANAGEMENT is for you. You’ll learn to map projects visually from start to finish, apply visual thinking to the essential PM tools, and practice by leading a real project with a team. The course comes in short videos with hands-on exercises, so you can use what you learn right away, whether it’s a community art room or a major work initiative.
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