Advertising, Business Strategy, and Storytellingbusiness strategy and storytelling (3/15/2022) If you're skeptical about the connection between strategy and storytelling, consider the challenges faced by advertising agencies and marketers. Ad agencies' storytelling challenges are complex because they must consider how the stories of their individual team members dovetail with READ MORE→
Shipwrecks, Reefs, and Stories About Youshipwrecks (2/17/2022) Shipwrecks are the ultimate symbols of massive failure. Building and operating a ship is an enormous enterprise that requires people, money, teamwork, and skill. Whether a vessel was sunk in battle or lost to a navigational blunder, every wrecked ship had READ MORE→
The Virtuoso, the Teacher, & the Centipedevirtuoso (1/18/2022) One Sunday morning not long after I had been introduced to , I was enjoying a cup of coffee in the cockpit of my friend Strider's boat. The sounds of rustling canvas alerted me to watch a bronzed man on READ MORE→
Storytelling Tips: The Rush of Discoverystorytelling: rush of discovery (1/4/2022) Storytelling tips: You're walking along and you happen to look down. “Hey, that's not a scrap of paper; that's a $20 bill!” Isn't it a rush when something we thought was useless turns out to be meaningful. Stories—whether they're truth READ MORE→
My Club Got a One-Star Review (12/7/2021) How do you handle a one-star review? Capable leaders are adept at untangling the many stories that compete for attention when problems need solving and egos need soothing. I monitor a FaceBook page for a local chapter of a national READ MORE→
Running Aground in the Seas of Commerce (11/9/2021) My client, Bill, came to me in a panic. “I've hit a wall. My competition is killing me. Styles and trends are changing. I need to rebrand, repackage—start over—new website, new brochures—everything—as soon as possible. “You might be right,” I READ MORE→
Sea Stories: Do You Trust Your Compass? (10/12/2021) Do you trust your compass? Finding your way in life, business, and traffic is a challenge. The easiest way to get somewhere without getting lost is to switch on the GPS. But too many people never know the joy of READ MORE→
Phil Woods: Is Your Work Beneath You?Phil Woods Saxopohone (9/14/2021) I was frustrated the other day, thinking about how I need a better computer. Some of my software is out of date and my machine just doesn't have the speed and the memory to support some of the the new READ MORE→
Be an Effective Storyteller. Try Story Listening (8/17/2021) Storytelling is a powerful tool, but no one ever talks about story listening. Have you ever been with a friend, family member, client, or colleague and assumed they were thinking and feeling something completely different from what they actually were? READ MORE→
Selling the Story: Storytelling for Skeptics (6/22/2021) “Storytelling…? I don't know.” A troubled look flashed across Sally's face. “You'll have a hard selling me on your topic. Last year's was a dud. I need to deliver some wow-factor this year or I might not be READ MORE→