# Work on your Devtool Money Shot Per [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money_shot): > a **money shot** is a moving or stationary visual element of a [film](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film), [video](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video), [television broadcast](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_broadcast), or [print publication](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Print_publication) that is **disproportionately expensive to produce** or is **perceived as essential to the overall importance** or revenue-generating potential of the work. You've seen them in movies: ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1768968278462/54acddac-009b-45f3-936e-e06016709f10.png align="center") But they are less discussed in devtools. Let's fix that. **Devtool money shots are the one visual that explains your product or message or story.** They are the infographic that maps out a worldview for an industry, the heavily researched chart that is sent to coworkers to prove a point, the slide that makes your audience members pull out their phones and snap a photo while you give a talk. The visual that industry insiders simply refer to by name and everyone nods because they've all seen it. Money shots have a wildly disproportionate impact to your messaging. You might speak or publish 100,000 words in a year, but the 10 words on your money shot might make up what 90% of your audience remembers about you. It stands to reason that you should invest accordingly — with the caveat that overdesigning a visual can decrease its "[moneyness](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moneyness)", and a tiny amount of imperfection is charming. What follows is a simple, nonexhaustive taxonomy of money shots from my experience. Please suggest others! ## Types of Money Shots ### The Benchmark [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689806283357/4d36d7c4-3e5a-428e-b190-20dda93ef065.png align="center")](https://github.com/evanw/esbuild) ### The Abstract Thesis [![Slide from my Figma Config presentation, describing that iteration velocity is the solution to all known software problems](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/F1aT_M9aAAEgJwi?format=jpg&name=4096x4096 align="left")](https://twitter.com/rauchg/status/1681694545845833729?s=20) Jack Butcher is [particularly good](https://twitter.com/visualizevalue) at this one. ### The Mental Framework [![Orbit raises $4M for its community experience platform | TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/orbit-model-canvas.png align="left")](https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C5GCEM_en&sxsrf=AB5stBh_VCJHWwqh1OODQfk7_wfMgX5ZvA:1689806300492&q=orbit.love+model&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiRsp6C65uAAxXh3DgGHRxHBFQQ0pQJegQIDxAB&biw=1066&bih=1111&dpr=0.9#imgrc=thvQwiPwg-PHyM) ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1697729967556/02ba17e1-6329-4393-92ad-10a34e61f88a.png align="center") ### The Architecture *todo: find iconic architecture diagram that gives people aha moment* ### The Trajectory [![](https://assets-global.website-files.com/6064b31ff49a2d31e0493af1/61debb3ebdfc519f3dbf987b_8v0fBUgLO93iWh3znVcGZH3KapUjMQ6ZJmYM0Eyav6P2ZE7gQDRcFdeaCFKlwdgoF1lq4VSmn0oUqx85w1bavCjuvUi6YwiU1JjNzIPJbOFFX4jkSWWlxcT1HnPONBcw9dYA8BtA.jpeg align="left")](https://airbyte.com/blog/the-deck-we-used-to-raise-our-150m-series-b) ![Price Changes Over the Last 20 Years Prove the Economy is Rigged](https://cdn.howmuch.net/articles/price-changes-in-usa-in-past-20-years-2294.jpg align="left") Here just paying attention to what is growing and what is not leads the reader to the conclusion you are trying to draw them to. ### The Timeline [![Stripe: Thinking Like a Civilization | The Generalist](https://assets.website-files.com/5f73bbd13fa8b95aedaf300b/60c61fe2c6ce5c44e4f180d1_Untitled_Artwork%20160.jpg align="left")](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.generalist.com%2Fbriefing%2Fstripe&psig=AOvVaw1dR-ra3Vpw1oVyzQEiw9Zn&ust=1689893794784000&source=images&cd=vfe&opi=89978449&ved=0CBMQjhxqFwoTCJjxo5Hvm4ADFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE) Timelines are deceptive - they look objective, but are inherently subjective and suggestive of a message based on inclusion/exclusion criteria. I used this in [the Third Age of JavaScript](https://www.swyx.io/js-third-age). ### The Taxonomy ![Vinija's Notes • Models • Transformers](https://vinija.ai/models/assets/transformers/3.png align="left") You can join timelines with Taxonomies: ![Damien Benveniste, PhD on LinkedIn: #machinelearning #datascience #artificialintelligence | 30 comments](https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/C4E22AQEzayyKgJmZwQ/feedshare-shrink_800/0/1675439151638?e=1699488000&v=beta&t=nYNp2txXgUvm5SSUND7TKpYG19pEVY-eP6_FaftrKpA align="left") ### The Hidden Imagery [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689806607182/4be3e020-9ea4-4f61-b91e-42e2e1f38bc1.png align="center")](https://twitter.com/EricVicenti/status/1468652009058287621?s=20) The "thing you're very used to seeing was secretly something else all along" is rare but very effective when the opportunity arises. ### The Audience Positioning [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689806854453/eb0d4be7-b5c6-4dd9-b224-9b7fcc480ded.png align="center")](https://twitter.com/swyx/status/1676666771938627584) I used this one in [the Rise of the AI Engineer](https://www.latent.space/p/ai-engineer) and in [OSI Layers for Coding Careers](https://www.swyx.io/osi-layers-coding-careers). People like to know where they sit and be given clear language for how they differ from their peers. ### Memes I've used that on this very magazine. Horizontal memes work better because of how these things tend to unfurl. ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689808187354/40b0af5b-88a4-46b8-bcee-6b5fbf5392f7.png align="center") ### The Talk Map [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689807454418/2aae3232-d700-4913-8434-b93abbe395bc.png align="center")](https://www.destroyallsoftware.com/talks/boundaries) This one is mostly only useful for talks, so I leave it last. ## Money Shots that No Longer Work They are overused, just stop (doing them badly and expecting any reaction at all). ### The God Box [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689806700533/6e5b525a-5ed8-4d83-ae21-0813d735dabf.png align="center")](https://twitter.com/swyx/status/1629553997416910849?s=20) ### The 2x2 [![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1689807269493/3c056d41-7f03-4b51-884f-e60a4ab4e469.png align="center")](https://twitter.com/mattturck/status/1509167446833483791) It's not hard to modify the 2x2 if you put a little more effort into it: [![The Social/Communication Map](https://i0.wp.com/stratechery.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/photo-2.jpg?resize=600%2C466 align="left")](https://stratechery.com/2023/threads-and-the-social-communications-map/) which directly inspired the one in [4.5 Kinds of Devtool Platforms](https://dx.tips/platform-kinds) and [Radiating Circles of DX](https://dx.tips/circles).