Storytelling has the power to engage, teach, inspire, and motivate. Storytelling provides context for your content and makes it much more memorable.

Rod and Brian interview Doug Stevenson, President of Story Theater International. For over 25 years, Doug has been a pioneer in the science of the art of storytelling in business. This very informative session is packed with practical tips and examples, including:

• Keys to making a story more meaningful
• Doug's Story Theater Method
• Nine steps of story structure

Whiteboard Notes:

Reflection Questions:

1. Doug identified four keys to making your story more meaningful (personal story, meaningful moment, challenge or obstacle(s), and life lesson). Which are you executing well? Need some improvement in?
2. We were encouraged to look for a moment of crisis, challenge, or obstacle to build our story around. What personal story could you use to build your story around a high-performance culture and/or great leadership?
3. Doug offered a 9-step story structure (see whiteboard). What one step, if improved, would make a significant difference in your storytelling effectiveness?
4. Doug shared the importance of having a phrase that pays to challenge the listener to take action. For example, "no one is looking". My challenge to you is to always be safe, even when no one is looking. What was the last effective 'phrase that pays' you used?