Cheryl Hunter

#463: How to Use Your Personal Brand Story as a Superpower

#463: How to Use Your Personal Brand Story as a Superpower

You, like everyone, has had highs and lows in your life. These are the moments that shape who you are and inform your unique expertise the world needs to hear about.

But sharing your story, especially the unsettling dark days, is often hard because you’re afraid that people won’t respect you for what you’ve been through.

Cheryl Hunter hid her story of being abducted, abused and left for dead for years because she feared what people would think.

But it is this event in her life that has shaped her expertise as model, media personality, and personal branding coach.

Now she freely shares her story everywhere to help others find the courage to do the same.

(more…)

Robert McKee

#462: How to Replace Mind-Numbing Business Rhetoric With Inspiring Storytelling

#462: How to Replace Mind-Numbing Business Rhetoric With Inspiring Storytelling

You want to inspire your people with a gripping story that paints your company’s compelling vision and mission.

But you may be losing your team because so many leaders try to coerce with rhetoric rather than cajole with a story.

Legendary Hollywood story consultant and author of Storynomics: Story-Driven Marketing in the Post-Advertising World, Robert McKee illustrates the difference between the typical boring-2-bored business communications and the enchanting power of brand storytelling.

This is an encore replay of my interview with McKee from 2017 when he launched Storynomics. 

The beautiful thing about the timeless nature of storytelling is that his insights from this show are more relevant today than ever.

(more…)

Ashley Stahl

#461: Learn the Presentation Secrets of a Viral TEDx Creator

#461: Learn the Presentation Secrets of a Viral TEDx Creator

We all have been there: you have a big-time presentation to make, the stakes are high, and if you nail it, then your career, company or brand will be propelled forward.

But you’re terrified because you’re not sure you have clarified your central point enough to make it compelling and memorable

So why not let a former counterterrorism expert with the Pentagon turned viral TEDx Talk creator help you calm down and *own* the room with your presentation?

Following her work in international intrigue, Ashley Stahl has become a career expert, author, podcaster and speaker. She wrote the international best-selling book YOU Turn, and is a top 100 TEDx speaker.

She has been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, The Steve Harvey Show and so many more.

(more…)

Glenn Ginsburg

#460: How to Use the Creator Economy to Build Belief in Your Brand Story

#460: How to Use the Creator Economy to Build Belief in Your Brand Story

In his memoir Shoe Dog, NIKE Founder, Phil Knight said, “People, sensing my belief, wanted some of that belief for themselves. Belief, I decided. Belief is irresistible.”

How well have you built belief in your brand through the stories you tell?

Or maybe the more important question is, “How do you build belief in your brand through the stories you tell?

Glenn Ginsburg, President of QYOU Media, Inc., an award-winning, full-service media and marketing company that creates influential, digitally native and creator-centric marketing and social campaigns for some of the most beloved entertainment franchises in the world, will show you how they build belief in the movies they market.

With experience across the creator economy and entertainment industry, Glenn joined the QYOU team in 2015 and oversees brand partnerships, strategy, creative content development and distribution for campaigns for a client roster that includes Warner Bros, Disney, Universal Pictures, Activision, Ubisoft, Capcom, MGA and more

(more…)

Julienne Ryan

#459: How to Win Against Digital Distraction With Your Storytelling

#459: How to Win Against Digital Distraction With Your Storytelling

Do you remember the campy TV series from the 1960’s called Lost In Space?

When I was interviewing Organizational Storyteller and humorist, Julienne Ryan, for this week’s episode on winning against digital distraction, I couldn’t help but think of the corny robotic dialogue on that show.

So I had fun with the opening of this podcast featuring the confrontation between the main robot and its arch-villain Robotoid, because it reminded me of so many of the corporate meetings I’ve experienced.

Plus, I knew our guest would appreciate the humor and the point it makes about humanizing your communications to overcome digital distraction and the destruction it reaps.

Julienne Ryan grew up in Queens having three communication choices: be funny, fight, or run really fast.

She is author of the popular I Learned-it-in-Queens Communications Playbook, a book that teaches how to win the day against digital distraction. Julienne is organizational storyteller, keynote speaker, and soft-skills trainer.

(more…)

Jackie Cross

#458: How to Use Your Personal Passions to Propel Your Professional Pursuits

#458: How to Use Your Personal Passions to Propel Your Professional Pursuits

How effective is your personal brand in propelling your professional pursuits?

As a business leader, you know that it’s what you stand for that makes you stand out.

But we all can get lost in the mire of marketing when we don’t clearly communicate our compelling personal and professional brand story.

We’re going to show you how to fix that today with an influencer who has combined her love of physics, real estate and roller skating to create a marvelous brand in Austin, Texas.

You’re going to love Jackie Cross on this special edition of the Business of Story.

(more…)

Roger Sorkin

#457: The Trick to Producing Viral, Resilient Stories

#457: The Trick to Producing Viral, Resilient Stories

As storytellers, we want to produce viral, resilient stories that captivate and move our audiences to action. Right?

But that’s way harder than we think it is.

So I’m excited to have highly-award-winning documentarian, Roger Sorkin, with us today to share how he approaches his storytelling to make as big of an impact on the world as possible.

Roger is the founder of the American Resilience Project, a nonprofit that produces award-winning, mission-driven films focused on practical solutions to environmental challenges.

“The American Resilience Project wields the power of strategic narratives to meet the greatest threats to human security and civilizational stability. Our work is designed to strengthen civic engagement for achieving the energy transition, adapting to sea level rise, managing the climate crisis, strengthening food security, and more.”

(more…)

Kath Guzman Ga,lowa

#456: How to Communicate Your Brand Story With Compelling Clarity

#456: How to Communicate Your Brand Story With Compelling Clarity

As a brilliant brand marketer, you know the importance of always sharing clear and compelling stories about your product or service.

But you’re sometimes frustrated because finding clarity can be a murky exercise, especially if you don’t have a consultant outside of the fog of war in your business who can often see your story more clearly than you can.

Kathy Guzmán Galloway is a 20-year veteran of the CPG world.  She operates in her zone of genius as a strategist and facilitator, helping organize data and thoughts to create the clarity needed to make decisions with confidence.

In the past 10 years, she has built her consultancy, The Clarity Wizard, by working with some of the largest, youngest, and most innovative brands.

As a strategist, she helps brands drive growth with innovation.  As a facilitator, she provides strategic thought leadership for clients who are often too busy running their businesses to find ‘thinking time’ to grow their business through the clarity she provides.

(more…)

Michael McQueen

#455: How to Unstick Stuck Minds With Your Business Storytelling

#455: How to Unstick Stuck Minds With Your Business Storytelling

Have you ever found yourself trying to convince a person who is stubbornly opposed to your position on a subject or your mindset?

But the conversation faltered because their values and beliefs seemed to be impenetrable, your argument was crushed and perhaps so too was your relationship.

Michael McQueen, Change Strategist and author of Mindstuck: Mastering the Art of Changing Minds, shares how to persuade even your most obnoxious audiences with proven storytelling tips.

Michael McQueen is a multi-award-winning speaker, change strategist, and bestselling author of 10 books.

He has spent the past two decades helping organizations and leaders win the battle for relevance. From Fortune 500 brands to government agencies and not-for-profits, Michael specializes in helping clients navigate disruption and stay one step ahead of change.

(more…)

Joelle Prochera

#455: Is Magic Real? Coincidence, Serendipity, Synchronicity & Storytelling

#455: Is Magic Real? Coincidence, Serendipity, Synchronicity & Storytelling

Coincidences. Serendipity. Déjà vu.

We’ve all experienced these surprising, sometimes unsettling occurrences where perhaps the universe is trying to tell us something.

Trying to show us the way forward. It almost feels like magic at times.

But is magic real in our life or do you just consider this stuff woo-woo? And if you do discount these random acts of synchronicity, what might you be missing out on?

Joelle Prochera, Master Coach to Fortune 500 executives and the self-described Messenger of Magic has been paying attention to the coincidences in her life and has been keeping a serendipity log for decades.

She says that when you truly pay attention to these chance encounters they can excite and even sometimes unnerve you. But, these chance encounters can also show you the natural way forward in your career and life.

(more…)