See a photo of Sean, his bio, Part 1 of this Q&A, Part 2, and Part 3.

Q&A with Sean Buvala, Questions 6 and 7:

Q: What’s your favorite story about a transformation that came about through a story or storytelling act?

A: I am not so sure that transformation comes from story. I think stories of transformation are powerful, but not sure story alone causes transformation. I have many stories about how the use of “community service” has transformed teens, for example. If in some way the sharing of these stories creates an open door to other opportunities for service, then that is a good use of the story.

In most cases, I think story is there to “frame” the facts, ideals and purposes of groups, actions or information. I know recently a woman, who was in one of my youth programs two decades ago, found me to tell me about her life now. She shared with me how one of my stories in particular led her to her public service. Did the story cause that transformation? I do not know. More likely, it gave and gives her a framework from which she moved forward into community service. Stories carry the message but I am not sure they are the message.

I also have experiences of storytelling in corporate training that caused people to both recommit to their jobs and also caused at least one person to quit. Story, in those cases, was an amplifier of values and decisions already in existence in the listener, the catalyst to have them take transforming actions.

Q: If you could share just one piece of advice or wisdom about story/storytelling/narrative with readers, what would it be?

A: You must tell stories to get better at stories. You can no more be a storyteller by thinking about stories than an artist can create beautiful water-color paintings by thinking about paint. One must pick up the brush or open one’s mouth as the case may be.