Q&A with a Story Guru: Judy Rosemarin: Stories Are Real, Human, and Touch Us All

See a photo of Judy, her bio, and Part 1 of this Q&A.


Q&A with Judy Rosemarin, Question 2:

Q: How did you initially become involved with story/storytelling/narrative? What attracted you to this field? What do you love about it?

A: I loved Miss Leigh, my fourth-grade teacher, who after recess, would sit her huge self down in her chair behind her desk and say, “Now children……… Once upon a time….” and we were hers! No matter how wound up we might have been in the playground, playing dodge ball, marbles, chasing one another, as soon as we got back into Miss Leigh’s room, and began to put our lunch boxes back and perhaps put our outer clothes in the “cloak room,” as she called it, we would see her slowly move to that chair at her desk, take out a book and be captured by that haunting, “Once upon a time.”

For over 26 years, I have been working with executives in transition and in position. They seem to know how to make statements and claims but sorely need to learn how to become more memorable by learning how to intentionally select, craft and tell a story that helps others understand the storyteller and themselves.

What I love about stories is that they are real, human and touch us all. With the high tech world we are living in, I think more than ever, stories are what help us connect, remember our humanity and as I have also come to see, stories beget stories, so there is no end to possibilities.