Weston Woods, what an amazing place. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to tour the old studio sites of Weston Woods in Weston Connecticut. Weston Woods is an animation company that was ahead of its time back in the 50's and 60's. They developed a way of animation, different from the traditional cartoons of action one cell at at time.
I can't say I was familiar with Weston Woods but once I got to the property I realized that as a youngster I was the beneficiary of the creative genius behind the studio. The first projects were taking well known children's books and animating them for movies. Their idea was to use the pictures from the book and use the actual text. They produced many of these shorts for Captain Kangaroo. As a devoted fan of the Captain I vaguely remember these movies that were shown.
It was fascinating to hear the story behind the animation. Morton Schindel, the founder, was there to give us his unique perspective. We also had the current president of Weston Woods on the tour. Overall, a wonderful experience into a different type of story.
They are trying to get the old property where the original studios are housed approved as a museum. There are some zoning issues. My hope is that they can overcame these obstacles and everyone can enjoy the behind the scenes story of Weston Woods.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Business Storytelling: New Forms of Communications
I just received a newsletter from a speaker colleague. She was announcing her debut on YouTube. It seems she attended an all-day event with celebrity speakers and then ended the evening by watching President Obama deliver his health care reform speech.
As a speech, body language, voice expert she normally would have written up a description of what she observed. However, this time she was encouraged by another colleague to put her comments on video. The reasoning from the other colleague is that we are about to experience another major shift in communication styles and videos will play a key part in the revolution.
She may be right, she may be wrong, but what I thought about as I watched the video, as opposed to reading about the speeches, was how history repeats itself. It made me wonder if in a couple centuries we are a world without the written word? Will all our lessons and history be passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth? Will Storytellers once again be revered members of society instead of viewed as children's entertainers? Who knows for sure.
What I do know is that the ability to communicate orally is once again becoming important. Learning to tell great stories is no longer just for entertainers, if you want your message remembered wrap it in story.
As a speech, body language, voice expert she normally would have written up a description of what she observed. However, this time she was encouraged by another colleague to put her comments on video. The reasoning from the other colleague is that we are about to experience another major shift in communication styles and videos will play a key part in the revolution.
She may be right, she may be wrong, but what I thought about as I watched the video, as opposed to reading about the speeches, was how history repeats itself. It made me wonder if in a couple centuries we are a world without the written word? Will all our lessons and history be passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth? Will Storytellers once again be revered members of society instead of viewed as children's entertainers? Who knows for sure.
What I do know is that the ability to communicate orally is once again becoming important. Learning to tell great stories is no longer just for entertainers, if you want your message remembered wrap it in story.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Business Storytelling: Networking with Stories
This past Thursday I attended a networking meeting. There were many familiar faces there but some new "commercials". One that impressed me was an insurance man who normally stands and gives the run down of services and products, very standard.
This week he started by saying that he wanted to share a couple of stories of customers that he helped this past week. He was engaging and informative as we all learned a bit more about the kinds of coverage he delivers and his commitment to servicing his clients. We talked briefly afterwards and I said how much I enjoyed his stories.
He was appreciative saying he had never tried anything like that before but that several people approached him to tell him what a great introduction he had. He thought he may have included a few too many stories and he may be right but he is on the right track by using stories. He received immediate feedback to just how powerful of a technique storytelling is in business.
So what's your 30 second story?
This week he started by saying that he wanted to share a couple of stories of customers that he helped this past week. He was engaging and informative as we all learned a bit more about the kinds of coverage he delivers and his commitment to servicing his clients. We talked briefly afterwards and I said how much I enjoyed his stories.
He was appreciative saying he had never tried anything like that before but that several people approached him to tell him what a great introduction he had. He thought he may have included a few too many stories and he may be right but he is on the right track by using stories. He received immediate feedback to just how powerful of a technique storytelling is in business.
So what's your 30 second story?
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Business Storytelling: WOW Customer Service
A client asked me about running a workshop to collect exceptional customer service stories. I immediately thought of Ritz-Carlton and their WOW story sessions that I had read about awhile ago. Each shift, employees gather for 15 minutes to share customer service stories that show going above and beyond.
Sharing stories and having the set time dedicated for this purpose drives home the value placed on customer service by the Ritz-Carlton. My client was not aware of the program at the Ritz but felt stories needed to be used to encourage great customer service. I agree!
I'm sure the employees have delivered exceptional service. The problem is, until telling the stories is encouraged and practiced what you probably will hear is "I don't have a story to tell." It takes a little practice, prodding and modeling but once the idea catches on it becomes viral, everyone seems to have a story. Then of course in the coming days human as we are, we will want to top the customer service stories and suddenly you have a cultural shift and loyal repeat customers.
I can't wait to get started, facilitating these story sessions!
Sharing stories and having the set time dedicated for this purpose drives home the value placed on customer service by the Ritz-Carlton. My client was not aware of the program at the Ritz but felt stories needed to be used to encourage great customer service. I agree!
I'm sure the employees have delivered exceptional service. The problem is, until telling the stories is encouraged and practiced what you probably will hear is "I don't have a story to tell." It takes a little practice, prodding and modeling but once the idea catches on it becomes viral, everyone seems to have a story. Then of course in the coming days human as we are, we will want to top the customer service stories and suddenly you have a cultural shift and loyal repeat customers.
I can't wait to get started, facilitating these story sessions!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Business Storytelling: Keep it Short
This week I was leading a Business Writing class. One of the attendees said that a superior has complained about her writing. He claims to have ADHD and has a hard time reading her lengthy reports.
She explained to me that she likes to put her reports in story format because she believes by giving the context around an issue helps to make the issue more memorable and actionable. I happen to agree with her, however, the story can be short and still make the message memorable.
Together we reviewed some of her writing and found lots of room to trim wording. A few simple sentence restructures and she no longer had the passive voice throughout. I explained that you can tell a story in one sentence sometimes; just wanting to report in story format does not mean the writing has to be long.
Keep it short and it is easier to remember.
She explained to me that she likes to put her reports in story format because she believes by giving the context around an issue helps to make the issue more memorable and actionable. I happen to agree with her, however, the story can be short and still make the message memorable.
Together we reviewed some of her writing and found lots of room to trim wording. A few simple sentence restructures and she no longer had the passive voice throughout. I explained that you can tell a story in one sentence sometimes; just wanting to report in story format does not mean the writing has to be long.
Keep it short and it is easier to remember.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Business Storytelling: Stories for the hire process
A friend just sent a link to an article on the use of stories in the job search. The link is https://sales.theladders.com/career-advice/life-story-boring. It is a quick read and basically encourages job seekers to think about their story and use it during an interview process.
I agree whole-heartedly but here are a couple of tips to keep in mind. The story should be short. My suggestion is about 2 minutes, no more. It is amazing how much you can say in 2 minutes when prepared so that your comments are focused.
Don't worry about bragging on what a great job you did on a project. The interview process is a time when you should feel free to talk about your accomplishments. Sometimes working with another person to get the story out and polished is the best tact. We don't always recognize the good stories; we think they are just run of the mill but a friend will let you know what really resonates.
Remember when the interviewer says "Tell me about a time when....", she is asking for a story so give her one.
I agree whole-heartedly but here are a couple of tips to keep in mind. The story should be short. My suggestion is about 2 minutes, no more. It is amazing how much you can say in 2 minutes when prepared so that your comments are focused.
Don't worry about bragging on what a great job you did on a project. The interview process is a time when you should feel free to talk about your accomplishments. Sometimes working with another person to get the story out and polished is the best tact. We don't always recognize the good stories; we think they are just run of the mill but a friend will let you know what really resonates.
Remember when the interviewer says "Tell me about a time when....", she is asking for a story so give her one.
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