data-storytelling
- Use it when:
- You're presenting analytics to executives or investors, writing a data report or business review, or explaining findings to a non-technical audience.
- It does:
- Shapes findings into an arc: a hook, the baseline, the data that builds up, the key insight, recommendations and a call to action.
- You get:
- A report or presentation that leads with the insight and ends with next steps.
- Also covers:
- Headlines that state a number and its business impact, transition phrases, and ways to state uncertainty such as ranges and confidence levels.
TL;DR
A guide to presenting data, not to analyzing it. The core is a story structure: set up the context and baseline, name the problem or opportunity, then resolve it with insights and recommendations, carried by three pillars of data, narrative and visuals. Its rules: start with the "so what", group in threes, curate instead of dumping data, connect to the audience's goals, avoid jargon, give context before method and end with clear next steps. A separate file holds three story frameworks (problem and solution, trend, comparison), each worked through on an example such as a churn analysis; visualization techniques such as revealing a chart one layer per slide, before-and-after contrasts and annotating a chart in matplotlib; templates for an executive summary slide, a seven-slide deck from the headline to the ask, and a one-page monthly business review; and writing techniques: headlines built from a number, its business impact and context, transition phrases and ways to present uncertainty.
Summarizes the skill at 4bde316.
npx skills add https://github.com/wshobson/agents --skill data-storytelling skills.sh pageSource on GitHubAll skills from wshobson/agents
- Total Downloads
- 17,600 on skills.sh, Nov 9, 2026
- Repo stars
- 42,334 wshobson/agents
- First seen
- Jan 20, 2026 on skills.sh
Weekly values
| Week to | Installs |
|---|---|
| Sep 21 | 240 |
| Sep 28 | 406 |
| Oct 5 | 580 |
| Oct 12 | 374 |
| Oct 19 | 322 |
| Oct 26 | 369 |
| Nov 2 | 382 |
| Nov 9 | 292 |
| Category |
Articles, docs, internal comms, research write-ups and prose that doesn't read as generated. Research reproduction, financial data, charts and diagrams. |
|---|---|
| Type |
Knowledge and rules the agent applies while it works: best practices, design principles, API references. |
| Effect |
Adds no side effects of its own. It shapes how the agent thinks, writes or reviews. Guidelines and routers are always effect:none, even when the task they support edits code. |
| Needs |
Instructions only. Works in any agent that supports skills. |
| Publisher |
Everyone else. Unverified vendor claims default to community. |
| Topics |
SKILL.md
From wshobson/agents at 4bde316. Checked daily, last changed Nov 6, 2026.
Frontmatter
name: data-storytelling
description: Transform data into compelling narratives using visualization, context, and persuasive structure. Use when presenting analytics to stakeholders, creating data reports, or building executive presentations.Data Storytelling
Transform raw data into compelling narratives that drive decisions and inspire action.
When to Use This Skill
- Presenting analytics to executives
- Creating quarterly business reviews
- Building investor presentations
- Writing data-driven reports
- Communicating insights to non-technical audiences
- Making recommendations based on data
Core Concepts
1. Story Structure
Setup → Conflict → Resolution
Setup: Context and baseline
Conflict: The problem or opportunity
Resolution: Insights and recommendations
2. Narrative Arc
1. Hook: Grab attention with surprising insight
2. Context: Establish the baseline
3. Rising Action: Build through data points
4. Climax: The key insight
5. Resolution: Recommendations
6. Call to Action: Next steps
3. Three Pillars
| Pillar | Purpose | Components |
|---|---|---|
| Data | Evidence | Numbers, trends, comparisons |
| Narrative | Meaning | Context, causation, implications |
| Visuals | Clarity | Charts, diagrams, highlights |
Detailed patterns and worked examples
Detailed pattern documentation lives in references/details.md. Read that file when the navigation tier above is insufficient.
Best Practices
Do's
- Start with the "so what" - Lead with insight
- Use the rule of three - Three points, three comparisons
- Show, don't tell - Let data speak
- Make it personal - Connect to audience goals
- End with action - Clear next steps
Don'ts
- Don't data dump - Curate ruthlessly
- Don't bury the insight - Front-load key findings
- Don't use jargon - Match audience vocabulary
- Don't show methodology first - Context, then method
- Don't forget the narrative - Numbers need meaning