Man reading stories from a book

Storytelling for Leaders

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$249
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Create business stories that inspire people, build connections with your audience, and ultimately advance your organization’s goals by using a repeatable, straightforward method.

Duration: 3 hours (Approximately 120 minutes of video lessons and 60 minutes of exercises)

Learn how to craft compelling stories that resonate with your audience to drive people to action, set a vision, lead change, sell ideas, inspire teams, or foster more creativity and innovation.

Participants learn 1) what a business story is, 2) when to tell stories and when not to, and 3) how to craft stories for maximum impact. This includes learning techniques for:

  • How to choose the right story
  • Proper story structure
  • The use of emotion, surprise, dialogue, and length
  • Telling stories with data
  • Where to find stories

The course consists of instructor-introduced concepts, practical application exercises, and supporting materials. The course includes:

  • Extensive instructor videos to guide you through the content
  • A downloadable course guide of slides to help you follow the instruction
  • A downloadable workbook to apply the method as you take the course
  • Exercises, quizzes, and case examples to help you apply the method as you learn it

The target audience for this course consists of individuals in analytical or persuasive roles at mid- to senior levels of corporations (e.g., analysts, managers, mid-level executives). The value of this course to the participants and to the organization as a whole are:

  • An ability to create messages fueled by stories to advance their business goals
  • Quicker audience connections by addressing their concerns and pain points
  • Increased confidence in storytelling which reduces over-reliance on data which saves time and money
  • Clearer communications leading to more efficient, effective, and faster decision making

Paul Smith is a principal at thoughtLEADERS. He is a former consultant with Accenture and more recently an executive at The Procter & Gamble Company. He is an internationally popular speaker and trainer in leadership and storytelling techniques. Paul is the author of the bestselling book Lead with a Story: A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives That Captivate, Convince, and Inspire. He’s also written the bestselling Sell with a Story: How to Capture Attention, Build Trust, and Close the Sale and The 10 Stories Great Leaders Tell.  Paul holds a bachelors degree in economics, and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Course Content

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Introduction
What is a leadership story?
Finding Stories
Story Structure
Emotion in Stories
Surprise in Stories
Details and Accuracy
Delivery and Length
Applying the Method
Lesson Content
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