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THRIVE: Using effective storytelling as a powerful leadership tool

For many of us, the holidays were a great opportunity to spend time with family and friends, often hearing and telling stories that make great holiday memories. We all have stories inside of us, and it feels good to tell them and feels even better to learn how to tell them well.

Leaders have stories to tell, too, and those stories can have a big impact on organizational effectiveness. We at Adventure Associates know that leadership is often a performance art and that one’s success as a leader is tied to one’s ability as a performance artist. We believe that storytelling is one of these important skills.

Tools, Tips & Techniques

A story is a journey whose beginning and end you can see. But instead of choosing the most efficient or scenic route, you choose a route that will leave you and your audience changed when you reach the destination. Simple or profound, the change must have meaning. The storyteller must pin down that meaning and communicate it to others.

Storytelling Tips:
• No introduction or story title necessary – walk up and begin.
• Keep it focused, simple and clear.
• Find the right balance between structure and spontaneity.
• Know your audience and plan how to connect with them.
• Stories should be personal; don’t hesitate to use “I” statements.

Recent Client Successes

Corporate Training: Storytelling

We were approached by the University of California San Francisco to help the leaders in their Campus Life Services department learn more about the art of storytelling. The goal was to develop the important skills needed to persuade others to support their future vision. They worked in teams of five, creating, developing, and presenting their stories. Their stories were inspiring, powerful, and sincere and they walked away with a deeper understanding and confidence in developing and telling an effective story.

Build a Boat

Team Building: Build-a-Boat

Our Build-a-Boat program lends itself well to the formation of some “tall tales” that live around the workplace water cooler for months after the program. We recently worked with a major healthcare organization in Albany, New York, helping them create some content for great storytelling while participating in a fun challenge. They wisely chose an indoor venue for their winter Build-a-Boat challenge. Teams of four or five worked together designing and building boats that one would eventually captain in a short race against other teams. Hilarity ensued as some of the boats performed well below expectation once they were put to the test in the water.