The cover article of the current issue of American Scholar, published by the Phi Beta Kappa Society, carries the headline “The End of the Black American Narrative,” with this subhead: A new century calls for new stories grounded in the present, leaving behind the painful history of slavery and its … Continue reading
Category Archives: Storytelling and Change
Showing the World What’s Possible — One Story at a Time
Daryn Kagan’s online community features a daily Web cast of stories that “Show the World What is Possible.” The idea behind these stories is inspiration and triumph of the human spirit. Of course, all the stories are archived on the site and can be browsed under these categories: Animals, Artists, … Continue reading
Dems Seek Stories to Prove Recession is Not Imaginary
Got this e-mail this week from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee: John McCain’s top economic honcho (Phil Gramm) called America “a nation of whiners” and said that we’re only in “a mental recession.” Are we all just imagining $4.00 a gallon gas? Were the 438,000 jobs that America lost already … Continue reading
Followup: Storytelling in the Modern World
I must have deleted it since it was in the past, but at some point, I had posted about a session at the Skoll World Forum called Storytelling in the Modern World . A couple of venues are available for those who’d like to learn what was said in the … Continue reading
Healing Acts of Telling and Listening
Erin Hoover Barnett recently reported in The Oregonian on how stories of change are healing neighborhoods through the Restorative Listening Project. Some snippets of the article that show how these stories of change can heal: The city of Portland is using a deceptively simple technique — storytelling — to confront … Continue reading
Johnny-the-Bagger’s Story: How Can You Put Your Personal Signature on Your Job?
Here at the conference I’m attending, I learned that the viral story of Johnny the Bagger is highly popular on the Internet and being used to inspire better customer service. It’s more than just about customer service though. While Johnny’s story has inspired many, Barbara Glanz, in turn, inspired Johnny … Continue reading
Share Stories of Love and Forgiveness
Launched in 2006, the Campaign for Love & Forgiveness uses PBS documentaries, community activities, online resources, and networking opportunities to encourage reflection and conversation about how love and forgiveness can effect meaningful change in individuals and society. Through community conversations, the campaign aims to create a meaningful national dialogue that … Continue reading
Stories for Change
One of my most significant storytelling interests is the idea of using stories to spark change. That’s the concept behind the site Stories for Change, described this way: Stories for Change aims to connect and extend the network of workshop facilitators and organizations that have come together in community-based digital … Continue reading
Change the Story, Change Your Life/Career
I continue to be fascinated by the idea of various forms of narrative therapy and using narrative to change our lives. In an unattributed article (which may or may not be intended as a review of or excerpt from the book Narrative Therapy by Freedman and Combs) here, narrative therapy … Continue reading
Are You Happy with Your Story?
“If you had only 37 days to live would you feel happy with the story you have lived so far? How would you express that story, learn fro it, leave it for others?” Patti Digh raises those questions in her blog, 37days and uses it as the premise for 37days … Continue reading