To communicate complex ideas, write at a 4th or 5th-grade level. Warren Buffett, a master of a complicated business, writes his famous annual letters with extreme simplicity. Using simple language and analogies makes your message more accessible and powerful, not less intelligent.

For the New York Times headquarters, instead of a traditional sign, Bierut's team broke the logo into over 300 small, angled elements attached to the building's facade. This respected the architect's vision while creating a legible logo from the street, a masterclass in contextual design.

Book cover design faces a core conflict: it must artistically represent the soul of a book while also functioning as commercial packaging to compete for attention. This tension explains why visual trends often emerge to signal genre and 'if you liked this, you'll like that.'

The popular perception of Galileo challenging religious dogma has a greater cultural impact than the specific, nuanced arguments in his actual writings. A book's power can derive from what people believe it represents, even if they've never read it or misunderstand its contents.

Trying to be overly clever with metaphors or complex language can distract and confuse an audience. Simple, direct narratives—like a "Dick and Jane" book—are more effective because they ensure the core message is easily understood and retained.

A block of text, no matter how brilliant, will be ignored if it looks intimidating. Dave Gerhardt emphasizes that formatting—using headlines, sections, and clear structure—is a critical, underrated part of writing. The content must be visually appealing to entice the reader.

A client's budget cut forced Bierut to combine two different event invitations into one. This constraint led to an innovative reversible design that worked for both, demonstrating how limitations can foster the most elegant and memorable creative solutions.

The California state flag, with text on it, violates a key principle of good flag design. It's considered a great flag because the text "California Republic" powerfully communicates the state's identity. This shows that breaking design rules is essential when it serves a higher, meaningful purpose.

In an era of online book sales, the decision window shrinks from minutes in a bookstore to seconds on a screen. A/B testing cover art directly with the target audience provides a significant statistical advantage, even if it challenges the publisher's or author's intuition about design.