If you do nothing else today, or the rest of the week for that matter, do yourself a favor and watch this video and then read Limor’s post underneath it.
All those on the storytelling bandwagon, ask yourself, how many shiny eyes do you have around you?
PROGRAM THAT CAN CHANGE THE PLOT OF A BOOK
Kind of ruins the storytelling triangle but I could see it used for training and what if kinds of scenarios.
“The invention of Ivo Swartjes from the center of the kinematics and Information Technology at the University of Twente will allow fans of books to make reading a more enjoyable pastime. As the portal GlobalScience, virtual narrator, developed in the Netherlands, allowing the reader to take a direct part in the unfolding events of the book.”
Exercise Your Creativity Muscle With Rory’s Story Cubes®
These could be a lot of fun. The use cases are literally unlimited.
“In today’s age of being plugged in to some kind of electronic much of the time, it is good to unplug on a regular basis and just have some quality fun with others. And if you are learning at the same time, all the better. There are quite a lot of great tabletop games out there, but some take a while to learn, or have a lot of pieces, or are good for only kids or only adults.
Enter Rory’s Story Cubes, a set of nine six-sided dice, each with a different image on them. They are meant to inspire storytelling and creative play.”
Selling Ice to Eskimos With Good Storytelling
I’ve heard it rumored that this nice man can put away some food at Golden Corral. 
He’s done a very nice job with this article. The follow up sounds like it will be good as well.
“Storytelling is one of our most important and primary means of communicating with others. The name conjures up images of reading bedtime stories to our children. Yet the art of storytelling is vital to sales and marketing communications. The great sales guys that can sell ice to Eskimos are also great storytellers that can engage their listeners and bring them to decision points. And I bet they can also keep kids enthralled when reading a bedtime story as well!”
Book Notes: ’61 Hours,’ by Lee Child
If you’re a Reacher fan, this is the best one in a while.
“What’s happening to Jack Reacher? Lee Child’s tough-guy protagonist, a high-level MP who quits his military career and takes to the road, sheds some of his hubris in “61 Hours.” Can this be a good thing?
While the pace slows in the 14th thriller in this reliably entertaining series, there are compensations. Child, the able storyteller, digs a bit deeper into Reacher’s past. And he prods the man’s psyche till a few of his fault lines reveal themselves. ”
The Critical Importance of Storytelling
I kind of felt like I was reading something from Kathy Hansen. It’s a nice post.
“Elaborating on one or more specific accomplishments—work-related projects or tasks that you undertook that had positive outcomes for your organization or your client—makes for an exceptional story. These could be things like an innovation you proposed, a problem you solved, an initiative you advanced, an argument you crafted that prevailed, or a cost-saving measure you recommended or implemented successfully. In other words, anything that you did on the job that positions you in a positive light in the eyes of an employer.”
Social Design: Transforming Storytelling into Storysharing
Some interesting questions.
“Social media, Obama, and the recession have shifted our focus from me to we, from publishing to participation. Where we once told stories to shape values and propel action, this presentation explores how to effectively share stories, build communities & offer incentives to participate.
Questions Considered….”
Storytelling Revival – Is it Really Happening? And Why?
“So, there begs the question – why? Why are people, individuals and organizations, turning to Storytelling? What is it about Storytelling that fills a need ‘out there’?
There are lots of reasons, here’s just one: Technology – we are so inundated with information and technology, we have so many choices, we can hear so many views and so many voices. Technology is overwhelming and can be very isolating. This results in a kind of craving, a craving for the simplicity and clarity of traditional storytelling. As we feel lost and overcome by technological advancement and choices, the voice of the storyteller calls us to a world that is less complex and more accessible. The story brings us ‘home’ to a recognizable place that feels safe, warm and we can understand.”
STORY TELLING VS. 10,000 YEARS OF POWERPOINT
“Hopefully, one of my stories will contain information or insights that is useful or interesting to audience members and will help them adjust course where they work. I find telling stories let’s people get inspired. I’m certain that demonstrating what I know does not.
Marketers today really have two courses to take in talking to customers. It doesn’t matter if those customers are business people or consumers. The can make claims and deliver talking points, or they can tell stories.
Stories work in traditional marketing forms such as advertising and PR and they most certainly work in new marketing forms such as blogs and video.”
