Storytelling as Strategizing

You’re reticent to tell a story – on your blog, in some piece of free content, in a presentation – because you don't consider yourself a storyteller. You understand that the craft of storytelling can have a huge impact on your business. But you’re not a writer (so you tell yourself). You don’t think in terms of flowery language, characterization, description, the deeply felt and meaningful. You think of yourself as a strategist. You’re good at finding ways to move the ball down the field toward a goal.

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Look What Lost its Voice: Your Logo

Social media makes it awfully hard to hide behind a logo. It wasn’t that long ago when a company’s faceless icon served as its definitive stamp of approval. Just slap it on a communications piece – press release, fact sheet, official statement – and trust that it adds an air of authenticity to whatever message is being shared with media, customers and the world at large. If necessary, put forth the CEO or official corporate spokesperson to go “on-the-record” with official comments or clarifica

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Don't Doubt the Potential of Your Stories

Who doesn't love a captivating story? Whether it's the profound expressions of a grief-stricken family, the intrigue of a made-up girlfriend, or the scandal of a former hero falling from grace, we just eat ‘em up. Beyond filling the airwaves of our 24-hour news cycle, these tales fuel a profound human need to feel connected with fellow humans. We yearn to share joy, sorrow, triumph, pain and purpose. Stories help give meaning and context to our lives.

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Call Me (anything but) Maybe

You must have lived under a rock if you managed to escape Carly Rae Jepsen’s 2012 breakout hit “Call Me Maybe.” This catchy ditty quickly escalated into a pop culture phenom that spawned scores of clever parodies. Co-written by Jepsen herself, the lyrics tell the story of a coy girl sharing her phone number with a boy she just met and inviting him to call her (maybe). In the throwaway world of pop music, the song struck a collective nerve.

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PeopleMike PlotnickComment
Haunted By Clockfoolery

One of my college roommates concocted a ridiculous rule that forbade him from beginning a study session unless it was the top of the hour. Bob adhered to this mandate with religious fervor, refusing to crack the spine of a book unless the time gods deemed it was OK. If the clock read 8:03, for example, he would be “forced” to wait an entire 57 minutes to try again – and he’d have a mere 60 seconds to jump on the study train.

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