In the Age of AI, storytelling is more important than before.
With a few keystrokes, we can now gather and organize ungodly volumes of information. We can even tell ChatGPT to fashion that information into a story. We ask a question, the algorithm spits out a neat response.
But does that algo-story express the ideas that matter?
And does the algo-story generation process help you to understand the issues on a deep, resonant way? Can it be your story, or will it be just a kludgy AI story?
That’s the thing: To tell a great story requires you to understand the issues that matter in an immersive, resonant, meaningful way. And no algo can express what’s unique about you or your work.
Storytelling requires deep play–an immersion in ideas and emotions that produces something fresh and meaningful.
Storytelling provides the most profound ways to understand your world–and to chart a path to the future.
How The Story Seminar Works
Story is about connecting, with your own imagination and ideas and with others.
What better way to dive deep into storytelling than an immersive, active, and engaged seminar with like-minded people?
The Story Seminar, developed by longtime storyteller and teacher Charles Euchner, is based on the latest insights from neuroscience, behavioral psychology, linguistics, film and literature, gaming, and more.
We know more about the process of story-crafting than ever before. And Charlie Euchner has gathered these insights, from hundreds of sources, and distilled them into a dynamic and actionable program.
Here’s how it works.
We work through three distinct phases of storytelling.
Here’s how the process looks:
Phase 1: The Scaffolding: In Phase 1, we will create the scaffolding of a great story. Think of it as a first draft. In this phase, we will create a compelling story about something that matters to you. All the basic elements will be at work.
That’s where most storytelling programs stop. But the best is yet to come.
Level 2: Surprising Action, Details, and Twists: In How it’s time to fill the story with the details and action points that give it life–that touch people’s emotions and engage their minds. The best stories deploy these fine points to provoke surprise and ask questions.
This filling creates a “You Are There” sense. It prompts the audience to become immersed in the lives of the people and places–and even feeling like they have a stake in the quest and outcome.
Level 3: Linkages that Create Deep Meaning: Finally, we make linkages among the many parts of the story. With these linkages, we move toward a complete and unified piece. Contrary to an old saying, stories aren’t just “one damned thing after another.” A great story is an organic whole. Each piece relates to all the others–and to the story as a whole.
In Phase 3, we pull the pieces together like a musician brings together the elements of a great song. Every note builds on what happened before–and then sets up what’s to come. No note is complete without all the others. Once we have all the right notes, and play them the right way, we produce a whole greater than the sum of the parts.
As Columbo would say: “Just one more thing…”
As we work together, we develop templates for the kinds of stories you create in your work. We dopn;t just offer the recipe or the list of ingredients. We also show you how to adapt it to your work.
Beyond Predictable, Vague Storytelling
In a world overwhelmed with “content,” it’s hard to stand out. Most stories are dull, paint-by-the-numbers jobs. They do not engage the audience. They might use clever anecdotes, use a snazzy quote, and show you a worthwhile character. But after that, not so much. Lipstick on a pig.
If that’s all you’re going to do, don’t bother.
But if you’re in, there’s no limit to the power of storytelling.
Storytelling helps discover what’s essential about who you are–or what’s essential about your family, company, profession, community, generation, technology. Really, what matters about whatever you want to focus on.
Storytelling helps you connect with your world. Your company, your clients, your customers, your audience.
Storytelling helps you to break apart complex topics, to discover what matters more than anything else. To go beyond the usual checklists.
Storytelling wakes people up, discovers hidden treasures and demons, confront denial and small thinking.
Storytelling is not a thing. It’s a process. And if you master the process, you can be better at everything else you do.
Finding Your Why
Storytelling is hard because, when done right, it requires excavating what matters.
That’s not easy because it requires you to work beyond your routines and easy answers.
Storytelling requires you to figure out WHY.
Why we are here.
Why we do this and not that.
Why we are going here and not there.
Why we need these people, these projects, these resources.
No algo-story can do that.
But you can.
Want to learn more? Take a look at the brochure below (and download it here).
And drop us a line.
Take A Look at Our Brochure
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