It’s never been easier to take and share great photos. And telling stories visually is one of the fastest, cheapest ways to connect with other people - employees, customers, investors, voters, or your team. So why aren’t leaders using photos more to build trust, inspire hope and fuel change? That’s what I turned to David duChemin to find out.

David is a world and humanitarian assignment photographer, bestselling author, digital publisher, and international workshop leader based on Vancouver Island, Canada. He’s spent decades chasing compelling images on all seven continents for the international NGO community, including World Vision, Save the Children and the BOMA project.

In this episode, we explore how visual stories create emotion and connect us, what personal skills you need to tell powerful stories with a camera and how leaders can start putting photos to work for them and their teams right now. David also generously shares access to some of his incredible resources for learning photography.

Get in touch with him. listen to his podcast or follow him on Instagram to learn more about how he can help you. 

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When most people think of storytelling for business, they usually imagine flashy advertising and social media campaigns. But stories are also incredibly effective inside organizations, helping leaders do things like navigate mergers, shift culture, enhance experiences, and create strategic engagement. And nobody does it better than Alison Esse and her team at The Storytellers, based in the UK.

As storytelling and business transformation specialists, The Storytellers have spent the last two decades helping over 180 major organizations worldwide move people to accelerate change and transform business performance.

"If you can actually make it emotionally compelling, then it's amazing how much buy-in you can get, because you're winning people's hearts. You're not just winning their minds. You're actually helping them change their belief system about something, helping them change their attitude , and really creating that emotional connection that I think every human being responds very positively to."

In this episode, Alison shares the approach they’ve used to do things like double the size of Citibank, create best-in-class customer service at the Wynn Hotel in Los Vegas and trigger a dramatic shift in employee engagement scores at Kerry Foods.

“You know, we started this business 17 years ago and realized pretty quickly that if you position it as storytelling, you will get a little bit of pushback. And quite often leaders really don't bite because storytelling per se is not what they're looking for. What they want is a business outcome. So what I learned very quickly was that what we're selling was an outcome. We were selling change. We were selling acceleration and pace. We were selling leadership capability building.  But the tool that we were using to make it happen was storytelling.”

Our conversation also explores the strategic importance of using stories to help win the talent wars, create and shift culture and streamline strategy. The Storytellers have found a way to turn story design into a tangible, repeatable, measurable business performance accelerator that can work for any organization, anywhere in the world.

“Story is not just another initiative - it's a sense-maker. The narrative is what brings us all together into something cohesive, something simple, something easy to understand. And most importantly, something that people can really believe in.

And a lot of our clients in the past have said it's a fantastic decision-making tool. Because if something that we're doing is not relevant to that narrative, then why are we doing it? So I think it can be a way of streamlining. It can be a way of simplifying, massively, the amount of clutter that is going on in the workplace, and helping just create a really comprehensive set of priorities that you can then much more neatly plug all of those different initiatives into.“

Be sure to check out their work and follow Alison for more tips. 

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People have to see themselves in a story for it to resonate with them. So it’s no wonder that decades of health promotion activities around the globe have failed to get people of colour to change their behaviour and adopt healthy habits. Not only have organizations been using boring, statistically-based materials like pamphlets and websites instead of stories, but even when they do use stories, they’re either poor quality or not culturally relevant. If you want to compete with big advertisers like McDonalds and Coke to get people to change, you’re going to need a kick-ass story that sticks.

Shyam Valera and Kashif Pasta, founders of Dunya Media, figured this out way back in high school after seeing the power of visual storytelling to move people during the 9-11 disaster. That’s when they decided to focus their careers on making high-quality, compelling stories about people of colour, like their South Asian community, to help them live healthier lives. Through their most recent campaign that featured a film about a Punjabi grandmother struggling with a diabetes diagnosis, they generated some impressive impact. Their engagement rates were 17 times the industry average. Plus most viewers learned something new about diabetes, changed their diet or adopted new exercise routines. 

In this episode, Kashif and Shyam take us behind the scenes to explore their simple and powerful approach to making culturally relevant films that don’t cost a fortune, and share their passion for purpose-driven storytelling to change the world. 

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Climate leaders around the world know that storytelling is the most powerful tool we have to lead us to a carbon-neutral future. But, no one has invested in creating a practical way to do it - until now. In this episode, you’ll meet Per Grankvist, Chief Storyteller of the Viable Cities project in Sweden. As a well-known author, journalist and sustainability expert, his mission is to lead a research project to develop, test and scale a storytelling toolkit that will help cities across the country become carbon-neutral faster. 

During our conversation, we explore the history, challenges and opportunities of climate storytelling through a lens of citizen engagement. Part of the problem Per and his colleagues have identified is that visions of the future are often too much like advertising – so grand and abstract that real people can’t seem themselves there. They can also be scary, more focused on loss than reality. 

“So if I tell you that we have to live a climate-neutral life, what might spring to mind is that I will take your car away and your burger away. You can never go to Hawaii again. And so it feels like I will compromise your life rather than to enhance it. Instead, we will describe what will change in your life. Things will get better and some things will remain the same. You will still be able to have a fat greasy, juicy burger, but it may not be made out of animals. For example, you will still be able to smoke. You will still be able to drink wine and get sometimes too drunk on Fridays. You will still have kids who are quarrelling in the back of your car, although that vehicle will be electric.” 

Over the next ten years, the project will research and develop ways to use stories to engage people in co-creating specific transition solutions - or stories of the future - that will work for them, in their specific places. As new tools and finding emerge, Per and his team will share them with the rest of the world for other countries to adapt and apply to their own unique challenges. 

As Per reminds us, in the words of Aristotle, “Storytelling rules the world. If you want to change the world, you need to master storytelling.” Make sure you tune in to find out how this team of global leaders are doing just that!

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We are all sales people, spending 40% of every day trying to influence what people think, say and do. And nobody knows how to do that better than ad agencies. What’s their secret? Brand storytelling. How’s it work? Find out, in this incredible interview with advertising guru Lance Saunders.

As the former President and COO of DDB - Canada’s top agency - Lance has over 30 years of experience creating award-winning campaigns across iconic global brands that include Coca Cola, Pepsi, Netflix, VW, Nordstrom and Heinz. But what’s really cool about Lance is that his expertise goes way beyond his street smarts - he also brings a rich understanding of the psychology and behaviorial science that drive our decisions to his story work.

In this episode, Lance gives us a crash course in brand storytelling, updates us on the research that drives it and shares familiar examples that illustrate how big brands use stories to influence behaviour. (His references include the brilliant work of Daniel Kahneman and Donald B. Calne). Plus, he offers some practical tips to help everyday leaders find ways to start to shape and share their own brand stories to make change. If you need to influence others in your work or life in general, then this is essential listening. 

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Today’s actions become tomorrow’s stories. And those stories define our culture, relationships, experiences, and outcomes. As a leader, how do you need to think and act to shape the future stories your people need?

Join me and Candace Giesbrecht CPHR to find out. As an HR consultant and coach who runs SVP Consulting, Candace operates what she calls “the red phone” - a specialized service that helps leaders navigate crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. With 25+ years of senior leadership experience in the social and private sectors, Candace knows what it takes to recruit, lead, reward and grow talent across industries. 

In this show, Candace helps us see that everything we say and do as leaders affects people and culture, ultimately shaping the stories we tell. Being deliberate about our choices and behaviour can go a long way towards building trust, creating clarity and strengthening performance. We also dive into challenges created when leaders fail to communicate, creating information gaps that can be filled with rumours, fears and speculation.

To help leaders and their teams learn to improve clarity and inform future actions, Candace also shares a couple of resources she uses. These include the work of Joseph Grenny and a toolkit she’s developing, grounded in the military science behind after-action reports. (Contact her for access). Finally, she reminds us that self-care is critical for great leadership. “Know where your oxygen mask is first. Make sure you have what you need so that you can help others.”

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“There will be a new social profit sector at the end of this pandemic.” And if you want to make sure your organization is able to continue serving your mission as a non-profit or charity, then you need to listen to Douglas Nelson, Manager Director of The Discovery Group.

Recognized as a ‘fundraising phenom’ by the Vancouver Sun, Doug raised nearly one billion dollars during his service as President and CEO of the BC Cancer Foundation, Chief Development Officer at the University of Alberta and President of the California Pacific Medical Center Foundation. These days, he and his team are the go-to consultants for social sector Boards and CEOs, helping them align governance, planning & performance.

In this episode, Doug explains why leaders in social sector are facing the biggest challenge of their lives – finding a way to communicate how their mission contributes to the kind of society we want in the future. He shares the latest data on how the crisis has affected giving in the sector. (Hint – it’s not what you think!). He shows us why it’s impossible to educate donors and ask them to give at the same time. And he describes, in crystal clear terms, how organizations need to use stories in the future to create philanthropical relationships that serve their mission best.

“Telling the story of how you’re going to make the world different through your mission, and inviting donors to join you on that journey is going to be the greatest fundraising case for support I think we’ve ever seen.”

If you want to learn more from Doug, check out his podcast http://www.thediscoverygroup.ca/podcast/.

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Rain Bennett doesn’t just tell health stories. As a two time Emmy-nominated filmmaker, public speaker, and writer , he inspires hope and action among people struggling with life’s toughest problems: disease, addiction, disability and pain. Through his video production company, Six Second Stories, he works with non-profits and purpose-driven companies to develop stories that promote better health outcomes and increase revenue. One of his biggest projects, Raise Up: The world is our Gym, takes us inside a global fitness movement for the world’s most underprivileged citizens, helping them create a road map to escape their desperate situations. 

This episode is a continuation of the conversation he and I had on his podcast, The Storytelling Lab, about how leaders can use stories to inform and inspire action and hope during the COVID-19 pandemic. Focusing on challenges in health and care, we talk about the power of stories to help people heal, in particular as a way for front line health workers to deal with the stress and trauma of their everyday work. Rain shares a great example of how we can do more of this work, through the Health and Happiness storytelling series he hosts. As we wrap up the conversation, he also shares his hope for the future and a call to action to leaders for transparency and better communication through stories to help us all get through this crisis safely. 

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Today’s crises demand new ways of thinking and doing. But true innovation is tough – especially if you’ve never done it before. That’s why many leaders lean on story as a familiar tool to inspire and inform breakthrough solutions. And that’s what I talk about in Episode 11, with two women who’ve been supporting the Indigenous Homes Innovation Initiative* – Natalka Cmoc, now Director General of Science and Policy at Indigenous Services Canada and Shannon Lough, Manager of Communications and Engagement at the non-profit Ecotrust Canada.

Their project promotes the development of Indigenous-led housing innovation across Canada. From day one, they knew they couldn’t use a typical competitive and bureaucratic approach to engage First Nations partners. So, they integrated the use of story into the process - from proposal development, to community engagement, to knowledge sharing and idea testing.

By enabling Indigenous project leaders to connect through stories about their shared ideas and visions for the future, the project team expects to be able to scale successful housing innovations much more quickly than in the past. Plus, they’ll support the development of new relationships and strengthen storytelling capacity across some of Canada’s most remote and isolated communities. Though the project was in early stages when we recorded this episode, Shannon and Natalka were already able to share some impressive success stories that have emerged through this approach. Find out more about the storytelling work and the innovators themselves.

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* The Indigenous Homes Innovation Initiative (IHII)is a five-year $36M federal program funded by Indigenous Services Canada and delivered in partnership with the Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers (CANDO). An Indigenous Steering Committee selected 24 projects led by  Indigenous Innovators to participate in the Accelerator phase where innovators will spend up to 18 months refining their project ideas. Project ideas that meet eligibility criteria will access additional funding to support implementation. Follow or contribute to the community of practice through the IHII Circle

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Sustainability can be a tough sell, especially in established organizations resistant to change. That's why former journalist and sustainability expert Eric Unmacht uses story design as a foundation of his sustainability strategy work. As he says, it’s easier to make change by working with the existing stories and culture in an organization than by working against them.

He should know; he’s spent decades making change at major brands that include Patagonia, Lululemon, Mountain Equipment Co-op and the Vancouver Economic Commission. Today, he’s leading a new initiative to make sustainability in the fashion industry more transparent in his role as the Director of Brand and Retail Performance at the Sustainable Apparel Coalition.

In this episode, Eric shares several specific examples of how he’s used story to research, design and test strategy. His practice offers a really clear illustration of relatively quick and easy ways to use story to advance innovation. Through this discussion, we explore what works in this approach and why, as well as where things can go sideways. 

Eric also unpacks the way he uses skills he developed as a journalist - including being curious, asking good questions and learning to accept that the best path forward may not be the one on which you start out. As we wrap up the episode, he shares some great tips about how anyone can start to use stories to inform and guide their strategic work - and reflects on the need for and power of story design to help us navigate an increasingly complex world.

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