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Michelle
Boos-Stone
view
Michelle's directory page
Michelle
is a vital and vibrant member of our community. Fall of
2007 she retired from the IFVP Board after years of dedicated
service. Throughout her busy career she's always taken time
to mentor others. We're very happy that she's agreed to
present at the 2008 Conference sharing her experience and
professionalism. Her answers to these questions show her
serious business acumen alondside her energy and sass.
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Featured
Member Interview
Scroll down to read or click on a link to jump
to the question and answer
What was your path to becoming
a Visual Practitioner?
How long have you been in practice?
What is your greatest strength as Visual Practitioner?
What makes your style unique?
Tell us about one of your favorite project.
What do you see in the future for yourself as
a visual practitioner? For the Visual Practitioner community?
What books are you currently reading?
Share with us two of your favorite websites.
If someone made a movie or documentary about
your life, what would it be called?
Who would you most like to meet whether the past
or today?
What inspires you?
Any final thoughts?
What was your path to becoming a Visual Practitioner?
I came into this field as an Organizational
Development consultant, working with corporate clients doing facilitation
and designing and delivering executive training programs. I'd
always drawn what I heard in conversation, for myself...and everyone
always asked for copies! I used the visuals to enhance my consulting
work and participants loved it. Then one day Nancy
Margulies called wanting to attend one of my workshops. She
saw me taking notes in pictures there and said "Hey, you're
good at capturing ideas visually. I'd love to mentor you!"
I had the privilege to be mentored by Nancy, one of the best recorders/consultants
in our field, who laid the groundwork for my own practice. Today
I am sickeningly, madly in love with my career!
How
long have you been in practice?
15
years (the marks of which are clearly seen via the "listening
hard" wrinkles on my forehead)
What is your greatest strength as Visual
Practitioner?
Three
things:
1. I focus first and foremost on building strong relationships
with my clients, intuiting what they need, and giving them more
than they ask for.
2. After all these years of honing my skills, I now listen
for (and record) what I know they will need when participants
review my maps after the meeting. That's when the real value of
my work becomes practical for them.
3. Mentoring and coaching other visual practitioners. I currently
have 4 fabulous mentees in this field, plus coach handfuls of
others informally. I feel it's my duty to give back to this community
that has given me so much. Plus, I enjoy bossing people around.
What makes your style unique?
I
use a lot of big, chalked circles to clump ideas, and bright marker
colors...and I also try to leave plenty of white space! I'm also
the only graphic recorder who wears 3 1/2" heels to work...and
I have a delightful, sparkling personality and never use profanity.
What do you see in the future for yourself
as a visual practitioner? For the Visual Practitioner community?
The
future for me as a visual practitioner is simply continuing to
stretch myself to do harder and more challenging work...that has
more of a global impact. I am constantly asking myself "Will
the work I choose to do today have an effect on the future for
my son?" Sometimes the answer is no, and if I have a choice,
I always choose to be IMPACTFUL.
The future
of this community of work is boundless! There are so many brilliant
things that others are doing, (i.e. digital storytelling, Ole's
work in Europe, 21st century literacy) that is happening right
in front of us. Visual literacy is becoming more and more important,
and thus this field will continue to grow. I feel lucky to be
able to learn new things from my IFVP colleagues so that I may
continue to glimpse the future of this field through their eyes.
Tell us about one of your favorite project.
One
of the largest packaged food companies in the world called me
and said "We need to come up with detailed visual maps of
several of our key production processes. McKinsey just quoted
us $1 million and said it would take 18 months to complete the
project. Someone here worked with you before and wanted me to
call you to see what you thought." I told them if they got
all of their key process owners in the room that I could do it
in 4 days, plus create "future state" maps for them
(of what it would look like after they took waste out of the system).
I wound up facilitating the process and also created dual sets
of gorgeous visual maps for all of their key processes within
the 4 days. The client not only paid my invoice, but gave me a
huge bonus...and continue to call me for work 5 years later. It
was a wonderfully satisfying experience of combining both my consulting
and recording skill sets!
What books are you currently reading?
The
Power of Kindness: The Unexpected Benefits of Leading a Compassionate
Life
by Piero Ferrucci
Creating
WE: Change I-Thinking to WE-Thinking & Build a Healthy ,Thriving
Organization
by Judith E. Glaser
The Owner's
Manual for The Brain: Everyday Applications from Mind-Brain Research
by Pierce J. Howard
Share with us two of your favorite websites.
Amazon
and eBay for
cool tools and books! (and, who am I kidding....awesome girl shoes.)
If someone made a movie or documentary about your life, what would
it be called?
Ruminations
of The Insane Woman Who Never Slept and Would Never Shut Up
Who would you most like to meet whether the past or today?
Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. He lived a life of unabashed vision and
relentless inspiration, through pain and suffering....and still
had no hatred in his heart. I would love to sit and listen to
him speak his vision...and record it to help him spread his word.
What inspires you?
Millions
of things inspire me! Specifically my 4 1/2 year old, who lays
on the floor for hours, drawing amazingly detailed imaginary theme
parks...and pictures of us holding hands with a heart between
us. My husband, who saves real people's lives every day. Seeing
people help one another without expecting a favor in return. Watching
love withstand hardship, loss and even death. A pink sky during
sunset so beautiful from my porch that it brings tears to my eyes.
I am also inspired by the cutout of the girl in the bikini from
the Victoria's Secret catalogue I have taped to my fridge; she
doesn't know it, but she inspires me not to snack.
Any final thoughts?
A
visual practitioner's work is about interpreting messages into
powerful, meaningful images that make a difference in the viewer's
work....and perhaps their lives. The recorder is a critical conduit
for change and they must honor the importance of their role. It
is my belief that this work is a higher calling, and that those
who choose this profession embrace it with every fiber of their
being. My work is part of the fabric of my life! It is with me
throughout everything that I do in this world. It helps me communicate
with others better by having a powerful vehicle at (literally)
my fingertips. Now, if I could only get my office organized.
^
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