Narrative Memos

Replacing bullet-point presentation slides with structured written narratives: full-prose documents read silently at the start of a meeting before any discussion. The argument must stand on its own in complete sentences, with reasoning and evidence, rather than as fragments a presenter talks over.

Why it Matters

Writing in full prose forces clearer thinking than bullets do; gaps in logic that slides hide become obvious on the page. Silent reading gives everyone the same complete context before opinions form, and the document becomes a durable, reviewable artifact rather than a performance that vanishes when the meeting ends.

Signals

• Decisions made off slide decks that look persuasive but fall apart under questions.
• Meetings dominated by the most confident presenter rather than the best argument.
• "What did we actually decide, and why?" with no record.

Benefits

Sharper reasoning, higher-quality and more egalitarian discussion, shared context, and a lasting record of the thinking behind a decision.

Risks

Writing a good narrative is hard and slow; a polished narrative can still be wrong, or persuasive beyond its merits; without the silent-reading discipline the format loses much of its value.

Tensions

The effort of writing well competes with the speed of assembling slides; and prose that reads smoothly can mask a weak argument as easily as it can expose one.

Examples

A several-page memo read in silence to open a review, then discussed; replacing a pitch deck with a written proposal that states the problem, options, and recommendation in full.