Storytelling Built For Innovation

“Megan and I worked together to co-write one of our national Spark workshops: ‘How to Write an Authentic Story.’ I knew the freelancers in attendance would love the chance to discuss how they engage their audiences, but was awed by the sudden increase in online engagement with us via the event hashtag, #FreelanceSpark! Megan’s event was the first to spur a real national discussion.”

Thank you, Spendlove and Lamb, for providing me with an education in Twitter that spoke my language. Before the workshop, I had struggled to interact online in a way that felt natural and meaningful. Twitterversity gave me a framework for understanding Twitter interaction in a way that made sense to me. It has encouraged me to use Twitter in a way that feels wise and considered rather than manic and hyper, as online interaction often feels.

Spendlove and Lamb helped our committee identify their common purpose and key message, which individual members then built their personal story around. We have used this to tell stories to 20 different internal teams in our organisation, resulting in a massive shift in attitudes and support for what we are trying to change. Our narrative strategy has gotten everyone on the same page and identifying what’s interesting about our story or message. Cutting through the ordinary to find the extraordinary.

It is possible to make an authentic, provoking and entertaining story from anything – even an alcohol harm minimisation project. The Narrative Strategy has helped me understand the importance of using story to help create culture change. An authentic story makes people want to be a part of the experience and they start to see the narratives in their own lives.