this one is key for designers but i think it applies to anyone who ever presents an idea. in essence, the lesson is that presentation matters, specifically context. context is key for people to understand your vision, and one step further, be excited about it. they have to visualize it and it's your job to help them do that. (remember the castles?) that might mean convincing a designer at your organization to do you a favor and put some time into an important internal report to ensure you get buy in. it might also mean spending time setting up an idea in a pitch deck, outlining your mission statement a little deeper and with stronger visuals, or using color to better highlight what numbers are going up and what numbers are dropping in a boring data report.

david airey's blog spoke to this recently. see below for an excerpt, and here for the full post.

"When Giorgio Armani was first shown Chermayeff & Geismar’s new logo for Armani Exchange (A|X), he rejected it outright. The designers later found out that due to Armani’s infamously busy schedule, the new mark had been presented to him between meetings, on a white piece of paper."

"The A|X directors of advertising and branding, Tom Jarrold and Matthew Scrivens, then suggested approaching Armani a second time (which they almost never do) with the entire Chermayeff & Geismar presentation, which showed the logo in such applications as magazine ads, storefronts, and billboards."

"Once Armani saw the increased visual impact of the new identity in context, he immediately approved it."

so, friends. remember: presentation matters. go the extra mile to help your audience (your boss, your client, your team) visualize what you're selling. and when it comes to presentation, if content is king, context is queen.