FACTFULNESS

Rules of ThumbControl your dramatic instincts by making it a habit to always

question dramatic stories that trigger your dramatic instincts.

1 2
TO CON TRO L T HE GA P INST INCT TO C O N TRO L TH E N EGATIVITY INSTINCT

Locate the majority Expect negative news

Is there really a gap? Would improvement get attention?

3 4
TO CON TRO L T HE ST R A IGHT L INE INST INC T TO C O N TRO L TH E FEAR INSTINCT

Imagine bending lines Calculate the risk

Why would this line not bend? Is it really dangerous?

5 6
TO CON TRO L T HE S IZE INST INCT TO C O N TRO L TH E G EN ERA LIZ ATIO N INSTINCT

Check the proportions Question your categories

Is it big in comparison? How are they different?

7 TO CON TRO L T HE DE ST INY INST INCT

Notice slow changes 8 TO C O N TRO L TH E S I N GLE PE RS PE CTIVE INSTINCT

Use multiple tools

Isn’t it always changing slowly? What other solutions exist?

9 Resist pointing finger 10 Take small steps

TO CON TRO L T HE BL A M E INST INCT TO C O N TRO L TH E U RG ENCY INSTINCT

What system made this possible? Can we make decisions as we go?

www.gapminder.org/factfulness
This poster is part of Gapminder’s free teaching resources. Gapminder is an independent Swedish foundation with no political, religious or economic affiliations. We fight devastating misconceptions with a fact-based worldview which everyone can
understand. LICENSE: Freely available under Creative Commons Attribution License. Please copy, share, modify, integrate and even sell them, as long as you mention ”Based on a free teaching material from www.gapminder.org”.