One of the underlying principles of BI visualization media is to help users rapidly identify patterns in the performance of their business operations, products and markets. However, pattern blindness can be a trap, as I experienced with a personal moment the other morning.

Shoes, Shoes

Now I have to admit that I am a bit of an order freak in my dressing room – my clothes hang in accordance to color blocks to make it easier for me to find things – sounds sensible, right? Likewise, my shoes all have their place. My casual walking, running and gym shoes are always in the same place, and in the same order.

So naturally, when I went to get my walking shoes the other day I was greeting with a gap! Frustrated, as I only had a limited time to get out in the sunshine before it would be raining again I searched the house high and low [all 6 levels] to no avail. Okay – no problem, I will simply wear my running shoes [you see I am not quite suffering from OCD].

As I went to stand to leave the room I noticed the offending apparel alongside a pair of dress boots – in quite the wrong location. Since these are in one of the most obvious positions to see when one walks into the room I wondered why I hadn’t seen them earlier – forget about how they got there!. Then it dawned on me – my brain was so tuned to viewing my dressing room [even when it is rather messy] in a particular order – in terms of relative placement of items. My brain had become blind to items that were out of place – it could only recognize something new or something missing.

Pattern Blindness in Data Visualisation

The same thing happens when viewing patterns in data representations – one can get so used to seeing a particular event performing to expectations that the brain stops looking at it – and it can be easy to miss that once a year change that may signal something significant.

So think about how you view your dashboards and reports and try to develop a succinct order to viewing so you are not tempted to skip over items on the very day they may just be the most significant change event in your business.

Author: Gail La Grouw. Insight Mastery Program Director, and Strategic Performance Consultant for Coded Vision Ltd.