7 Books to Help You and Your Organization Become Better Storytellers

As I was recently rearranging my “ridiculously-way-over-stuffed-I-need-to-straighten-this-thing-out” bookshelf, I noticed over a dozen books scattered about; books on story, personal storytelling and organizational storytelling.

Instead of putting them back where they belonged, I made a tall pile on the floor. And then I just sat there staring at the pile.

I reflected on how much these amazing authors have helped me understand the journey of storytelling not only from a personal point of view, but especially from a business perspective.

Then the idea hit me: I should share these titles.

There are 14 book in total. The book list will be in two parts; below is the first half. The next batch will be in the next post.

The beauty of this list is that each book is entirely different from the next, proving the theory that “story” is an extremely fluid word meaning so many things to so many people.

Each one is fabulous; explore them all and see which ones you feel attracted to.

You just might see yourself or your organization in a new way.

I know I did.

7 Books to Help You and Your Organization Become Better Storytellers

1. A Whole New Mind: Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age

2. Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

3. The Seven Slide Solution: Telling Your Business Story Effectively in Seven Slides or Less

4. Tell Me About Yourself: Storytelling to Get Jobs and Propel Your Career

5. Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story

6. The Secret Language of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire Action Through Narrative

7. The Elements of Persuasion: Use Storytelling to Pitch Better, Sell Faster & Win More Business

Do you have your favorite books on story? Add them in the comments. Part two will be coming out with seven more books; 14 in total.

---Tom

7 Books to Help You and Your Organization Become Better Storytellers

Bringing Brands to Life Wins 2009 Strateg-e Award

Wow...

It's a thrill and honor to tell you today that this blog, "Bringing Brands to Life!" won "Best Use of Blogs" in the Hartford Business Journal's eTechnology Summit and Strateg-e Awards.

To every reader, commenter, subscriber, people who emailed me, and anyone who has ever had a helping hand in spreading this blog's work, I want to say...

...thank you from the bottom of my heart!!

The encouragement and support from everyone has really kept my energy going for almost three years of consistently writing for you.

It's also a great time to quickly mention this: if I haven't written about certain topics you want covered or you want some area expanded on, leave a comment below and I'll see what I can do in the near future.

Of course, if you want to join in the celebration, feel free...drop a note in the comments section.

Again, thank you and let's keep things rockin'!

---Tom

Bringing Brands To Life Wins 2009 Strateg-e Award

Are You a Big Thinker?

• Do you enjoy challenging ideas?
• Intrigued by new concepts?
• Wish you could share these ideas with your friends?

In other words, are you a big thinker?

If so, I’ve got great news for you.

Big Think is here.

"We are a global forum connecting people and ideas." 

Big Think is founded by the producers of Charlie Rose and features short video clips of leading thinkers in business and society.

Just a few of the many thought-leaders you’ll find on Big Think are Richard Branson, Paul Krugman, Jimmy Wales, Moby, Deepak Chopra and Andrew Cohen.

What’s the concept behind Big Think?

Here’s what “Big Think” says on their About Us page:

“The Idea: In the global digital age, there is a glut of accessible information. And while this information empowers you, the citizen-consumer, the only way to make any sense of it, is to begin an interactive relationship with the global thought leaders who can deliver the best news and analysis on the Web. Welcome to Big Think.”

Welcome to a new age in video.

• People looking directly at us.
• Sharing their beliefs.
• Challenging the status quo.
• Telling stories.
• Sharing ideas within a community.

Is this the new wave for how organizations will use video to engage their employees, customers, stakeholders?

What do you think?

• Are businesses next?
• Will organizations integrate video stories like these into their communication strategies?
• If not, what is holding them back?

Share you thoughts here. I'd love to hear what you have to say about this emerging trend.

---Tom

Are You a Big Thinker?

Is This the Future of Video Storytelling for Organizations?

I don’t know how I missed this, but I did.

In February of 2007, The Washington Post launched “onBeing.”

The concept?

We need to get to know each other better and what better way to do that than by capturing everyday stories from everyday people.

The result? Short video stories that are:

• Compelling

• Inspiring

• Radically simple

“The unique videos present the musings, attitudes, passions and quirks of people in an up-close documentary style. Each person speaks to the camera against a stark white background. The uncomplicated presentation intensifies the viewing experience and focuses the spotlight on each person's story without distraction.” (Washington Post press release)

Beyond the simplicity it offers, there is something “soulful” about it. Perhaps it’s the fact that each one of us have stories that resonate with one another. Yes, the details in our stories are different but the truth in another’s story is also within us, too. After watching a few of these stories, I find myself remembering that we are all connected and inseparable.

“The initial four “on Being” segments are emblematic of how we can learn from each other by sharing experiences and thoughts.” (Washington Post press release)

Maybe this is why we’re seeing more organizations embrace this approach to connect to their viewers and readers.

Over to you-

• Can organizations use video narratives as a way to learn from one another?

• Are video narratives an effective way to genuinely engage employees and its customers?

• In a time of information saturation, should organizations integrate narratives into their communications efforts? If so, how?

• Can our individual stories be part of a larger brand’s story?

So what do you think?

---Tom

PS. I've successfully used this "Errol Morris" technique many times. It's an incredibly simple but effective way to engage your audience with your story or message.

Is This the Future of Video Storytelling for Organizations?

Are You a Genius or Do You Have a Genius?

Being a genius vs. having a genius.

We can think of ourselves as being a genius or can we re-frame the creative process by thinking we have a genius.

What an incredible insight.

And that's the premise of "Eat, Pray, Love" author, Elizabeth Gilbert, in her TED presentation.

Elizabeth addresses two fascinating questions in this powerful, thought-provoking speech at TED:

1. As artists and creative people, "how do we create a safe distance between who we are and our anxiety about what the reaction will be to our next work"?

2. Are there models from other cultures on "how to help creative people manage the inherent emotional risks of creativity"?

Where did her search take her? To ancient Greece and ancient Rome where having a genius (and not being called a genius) was integrated into the artist's work.

My favorite part of her talk is about half-way through where she focuses on re-framing the creative process:

"And then the Renaissance came and everything changed and we had this Big Idea and the Big Idea was let's put the human being at the center of the universe, above God and all mysteries. There's no more room for like mystical creatures who take dictation from the divine. And it's the beginning of rational humanism, and people started believing creativity came completely from the self of the individual."

"And for the first time in history you start to hear people referring to this or that artist as being a genius rather than having a genius. And I gotta tell ya, I think that was a huge error. I think allowing somebody, like one mere person, to believe that he or she is like the vessel, the font, and the essence and the source of all divine, creative, unknowable, eternal mystery is just like a smidge too much responsibility to put on one, fragile human psyche. It's like asking somebody to swallow the sun. It just completely warps and distorts egos and it creates all these unmanageable expectations about performance. And I think the pressure of that has been killing off our artists for the last 500 years."

Elizabeth then leaves us with this important question:

Isn't there another way for us humans to relate to the creative mystery?

No matter what field you are in, stop everything. Take 20 minutes. Grab some tea. This is really inspiring and a "must watch" presentation.

What do you think?

---Tom

Are You a Genius or Do You Have a Genius?