Narrative Strategy and Storytelling for Organisations
Helping organisations solve communication, engagement and change challenges through story
In the realm of human-centred design, we face a paradox. We listen to stories brimming with emotions and experiences during the research phase. Yet, as we synthesise these narratives into user personas, the original stories often dissipate, leaving behind mere shadows of their former richness. This became evident nine years ago during my initial training…
Acting is about telling the truth. This can seem counterintuitive, considering the costumes, makeup and sets that go into the average play or series. It is carefully constructed and fabricated. And yet, if the performances aren't convincing, an audience will tune out or walk away if it doesn't feel authentic. Acting is a powerful medium…
Strategic narratives are tools that communication professionals use to align key messages to the goals a group or organisation is working towards. Using authentic stories of individuals to bring those key messages to life ensures that all messages are relatable and illustrate the goals an organisation is working towards in ways that its audience will understand.
Stage Combat in the form of sword fighting entered my life, unexpectedly merging two seemingly disparate worlds into one thrilling pursuit.
"I understood, through rehab, things about creating characters. I understood that creating whole people means knowing where we come from, how we can make a mistake and how we overcome things to make ourselves stronger." ― Samuel L. Jackson Character development is central to telling a good story. A story feels flat without well-rounded and believable…
Personas help us understand and empathize with the end user. A persona is a fictional representation of a target user group that helps to bring a human face to the data and insights gathered during research. However, to design genuinely empathic experiences, we need more than just personas to build a deep understanding of the user's emotional landscape. That's where character development comes in, and acting skills can expand our connection with the people we are designing for.
Seven years ago, I typed two words into the google search box, ‘Narrative’ and ‘Strategist’. A small but mighty list of communication agencies and professionals who used narrative to create impact appeared.
Learn how generative story thinking uses mystery, metaphor and foreshadowing to create meaning and why it's the most important skill in the age of AI.
William Shakespeare was a playwright, poet and theatre owner who lived over 400 years ago. His work is still performed today, translated into countless languages, taught in schools and studied by scholars. How does someone achieve this type of longevity? Two words, Shakespeare was – ‘audience centric’.
But this is not why is conceptualising what our lives will be like in the future is difficult. The wiring of our brains leads us to be bad at it. We evolved to think day by day. To survive situations as they occurred in weeks and months. And for hundreds of thousands of years, this has served us well.
Narrative Strategy and Storytelling for Organisations 