document.write('\x3cmeta http-equiv=\x22x-dns-prefetch-control\x22 content=\x22off\x22/\x3e\x3col class=\x22tumblr_posts\x22\x3e\x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3etransforming ideas into reality in Madrid\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cp\x3e\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWed 18 January \u2013 enroute to Madrid\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/16524238450#\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eIf any further proof of how necessary innovation and creativity are to business and industry in the current economic climate, it is presented before I have even set foot in the city.\x3c/a\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eThe Iberia in-flight magazine is carrying an ad for the \x3ca\x3e\x3c/a\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://congreso2012.madridexcelente.com/en/index.asp\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3e4\x3csup\x3eth\x3c/sup\x3e International Congress on Excellence\x3c/a\x3e and the theme is \x3cu\x3e\x26#8216;\x3c/u\x3eEnterprise and innovation in difficult times: 10 stories of success and 10 ways to achieve it\u2019, just up Sparknow\u2019s street; how to transform ideas into reality.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eI was on my way to join a panel of experts for the Crea-Net 2.0\x26#160;\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3eEuropean Think Tank on Creativity and Business Innovation.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eThe focus is on stimulating SMEs to be more competitive and to get more collaboration between companies.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eAgain, just up Sparknow\u2019s street.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eA further outcome is to improve public polices as often the rhetoric about creating more entrepreneurs and support for innovation is way ahead of the reality of public investment.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThursday 19 January \u2013 getting to work\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe five other experts, \x3ca href=\x22http://esad.academia.edu/KatjaTschimmel\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eKatja Tschimmel\x3c/a\x3e, \x3ca href=\x22http://m.lo.dk/kontakt/Hvemerhvem/LO-medarbejdere/p/PiaMulvadReksten.aspx\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3ePia Mulvad Reksten\x3c/a\x3e, \x3ca href=\x22http://www.forth-innovation.com/facilitators/gijs-van-wulfen/\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eGjis Van Wulfen\x3c/a\x3e, Ana Arroyo and \x3ca href=\x22http://www.pantarheyn.nl/Herman_Hoving\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eHerman Hoving\x3c/a\x3e, represent a range of organizations and nationalities. \x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3eThis team, as I really got the feeling we could be a team, was joined by representatives of the organizers and the partners, so 17 people were gathered and admirably guided through a wide agenda by Silke Haarich.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x3cimg src=\x22http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lyex4ebsjL1qcsgne.jpg\x22/\x3e\x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe fascinating thing about innovation and creativity is that there are so many roads into it and the backgrounds of\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3ethe expert \x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3egroup \x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3eincluded psychology, economics, design and arts, education and\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eknowledge management, each of us applying our original disciplines to practical application and all committed to supporting the Crea-Net 2.0 objectives.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eIt was a very amiable group, a great bonus when I remember other panels I have been on where personal agendas were flying about and intellectual flame throwers were deployed!\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eOne of the major themes discussed was education for entrepreneurs, which begs the question whether entrepreneurship can be taught, the popular perception is that they are born and not made, have a different outlook on business and they have enormous tenacity, following Samuel Becketts\u2019 tenet; \x3cem\x3e\x3cspan\x3eEver tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/em\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eHowever, entrepreneurs all need skills and there are now some very sophisticated programmes which enable business executives to develop their ideas and avoid the pitfalls of getting started.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe role of creativity within innovation is critical and it could be regarded as a basic competency for entrepreneurial companies. While I have a fundamental belief that everyone can be creative, it doesn\u2019t come from thin air. \x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3eAccess to tried and tested techniques offered directly to companies would help in developing their creativity quotient. The idea of a tool box was discussed and as importantly, offering support for how to use the tools, as possessing tools does not make a carpenter. \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eOne word which surfaced several times was \u2018trust\u2019.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eIf people are to work together they need to be sure that everyone is working towards the same goal and will not just take out things for themselves or steal clients.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3eEncouraging companies to work with others outside their field and developed cross- fertilization is a great way to foster innovation.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe morning ended with the experts being asked to produce their wish list for enhancing innovation. Here are some of the ideas:\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3etraining in thinking skills for creativity and innovation, \x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3emaking collaboration tools and techniques widely accessible, \x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3estart in schools and get peer evaluation going at a young age, \x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ereward innovation with tax breaks, \x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3efocus on mentors and networks and evaluation, \x3cbr/\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3edevelop problem solving skills, intrapreneurship \u2013 using what you already know,\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3edevelop employee driven innovation.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eI am really looking forward to working on all the above over the next few months and blogging about some of the other themes that were explored.\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0 \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standard\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3eBy Wendy Jordan Sparknow Associate (former Head of Innovation at The British Council).\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3euses of the d\x26eacute;rive as a tool for learning programmes\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cp\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/16351999509%20\x22 target=\x22_self\x22\x3eHere\x26#8217;s an extract from a research series with Clive Holtham of Cass Business School which explores slowness at work.\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standfirst\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe ubiquity of digital representation of the organisation can lead to a situation where knowledge workers are skilled in perceiving the organisation through digital lens, but lack sufficient skills in the perceiving the physical actuality of the organisation.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWe have been exploring educational approaches, which can address this increasing area of risk, and improve the skills of managers in perception of the physical world. One of the most promising areas appears to be the d\u00e9rive (Holtham and Owens, 2007), a term originally coined by Guy Debord (1958) and fellow Situationists, but which conceptually has more extensive historical predecessors. It is defined by Debord:\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Quote\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x26#8220;One of the basic situationist practices is the d\u00e9rive [literally: \u201cdrifting\u201d], a technique of rapid passage through varied ambiances. D\u00e9rives involve playful-constructive behaviour and awareness of psycho-geographical effects, and are thus quite different from the classic notions of journey or stroll.\u201d (Debord, 1958)\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eA d\u00e9rive is a group-based slow \u201cwandering\u201d through typically an urban area, with an emphasis on close observation and recording of the physical actuality of that area (Jenks and Neves, 2001). It also emphasises the conversation and dialogue between the members of the group (Lee \x26amp; Ingold, 2006; Pink, 2008). Although Parkins (2004) has some reservations about Debord\u2019s thinking on slowness, we report on extensive experiences with slow d\u00e9rives in a variety of professional educational contexts, in both teacher and manager education programs.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eAfter accidentally initiating d\u00e9rives, these have subsequently been self-consciously constructed as a means of enabling our trainees and students to learn with their peers through drift. In concrete terms this means that as academics working in two different fields we allocate periods of time to meet and learn together through a playful form of St Augustines (354-430 AD)\u00a0 \u201csolvitur ambulando\u201d, learning through walking about. To date we have d\u00e9rived together in and in between; London, Chester, Nottingham, York, Uttoxeter, Liverpool and Nuneaton.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWe then individually use the documentation and theorization of this process to model these approaches to learning for our students together with the use of another time-honoured learning affordance, the reflective sketchbook (Holtham, Owens and Bogdanov 2008). We also provide a city-scape for the students to experiment in. For the MBA students this is the City of London, for the PGCE Trainees it has included; Venice, Florence, Prague, Amsterdam, and Barcelona. Time, place and space are created for a form of informal, critical learning not customarily valued in the self-pressurising technicist state of Initial Teacher education in England and Wales (Hill, 2007).\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Quote\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u201cIn a d\u00e9rive one or more persons during a certain period drop their relations, their work and leisure activities, and all their other usual motives for movement and action, and let themselves be drawn by the attractions of the terrain and the encounters they find there.\u201d (Debord, 1958).\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eFollowing Debord\u2019s suggestion that the \u2018most fruitful numerical arrangement\u2019 to d\u00e9rive is \u2018several small groups of two or three people\u2019 (ibid), the PGCE trainees organise themselves in this way. In addition three of four whole group sessions are scheduled into the week to allow for intercultural and interdisciplinary encounters that deriving does not allow for. For example, a two hour workshop in a school in which forty drama and art PGCE \u2018s work together with 40 senior school pupils whose first language is obviously not English and a practical session with an applied theatre professional looking at the ways in which\u00a0 drama operates in their cultural context.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eDebord suggests that whilst the average duration of a d\u00e9rive is one day it often takes place within a deliberately limited period of a few hours, or even fortuitously during fairly brief moments. The PGCE trainees are encouraged to view the d\u00e9rive rather than the organised sessions as being core to the week and so select which of these they might attend. The emphasis is on educating reflective practitioners rather than training technicians which places this approach firmly in the learner-centred\u00a0 as opposed to teacher-centred camp in the on-going debates about teacher quality and teacher education in many parts of the world (Zeichner and Ndimande, 2008).\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://www.sparknow.net/publications/EGOSHolthamFinal.pdf\x22 target=\x22_self\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3eHoltham, C, Ward, V \x26amp; Owens, A\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3cspan\x3e | \x3cem\x3eSlow Work \u2013 designing space \x26amp; learning, presented at the EGOS conference, Lisbon, July 2010\x3c/em\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eAdd that to Sparknow\x26#8217;s attachment to curating experiences as you have a clue to awakening organizational imaginations. I was reminded of this when listening to \x3ca href=\x22http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0195pyy/Sunday_Feature_David_Hockney_New_Ways_of_Seeing/\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eDavid Hockney talk about new ways of seeing on Radio Three\x3c/a\x3e. Hockney can curate by translating, through his own art, into painting and things (sometimes via technology). I\x26#8217;m hamfisted and lucky that the smartphone gives me a way to record image, text and sound in ways that I can assemble to recollect and to see where the assembly takes me.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eHere\x26#8217;s my favourite Christmas hipstamatic snap, taken just before Christmas when I was, as my partner would say, dondering from the London Library to the 91 bus stop via Piccadilly. I love the company Leonardo now keeps:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cimg height=\x22500\x22 src=\x22http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ly9ejdCk5V1qc578m.jpg\x22/\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eAnd then, my other favourite from the run up to Christmas was a delightful romantic review of Sparknow\x26#8217;s new strategic position document (\x26#8216;shift\x26#8217;) with Chris and Sabine on the 5th floor of Waterstone\x26#8217;s (soon to be catastropically deapostraphied) by accidental candle light because the bulb in the light over us had blown:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3e\x3cimg height=\x22500\x22 src=\x22http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ly9e7me3Zd1qc578m.jpg\x22/\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3c!--EndFragment--\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3eSudan stories I rapid reflections on KMCA 2012\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cp\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/15627949135#disqus_thread\x22 target=\x22_blank\x22\x3eIts 3.30am and I am sitting at Khartoum airport waiting for the  flight back to Heathrow at the end of one of the most exacting yet  rewarding weeks I\x26#8217;ve had in over 35 years of working across many  continents.\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eSudan challenges you: its people are warm, inquistive  with an insatiable desire to learn. And yet time management is a work in  progress and the ubiquitous presence of officialdom and the ongoing  sanctions a significant drain on effectiveness and enthusiasm.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eDespite  these constraints the young are vibrant, highly intelligent and moved  to laughter and song with little prompting.\u00a0 The society is very oral;  stories are the currency of communication. External opinion is highly  sought after and there is a work ethic that is both surprising and  refreshing. By way of illustration:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cblockquote\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eIt\x26#8217;s 5.45pm on the first day of Knowledge Management  Capacity in Africa 2012 conference held in the Friendship Hall  Khartoum.\u00a0 This inaugural event on Knowledge Management which kicked off  at 8am has attracted over 500 delegates and nearly 50 international  participants though I am the sole European. The timing has gone awry by some distance.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eI get to my feet to begin my  presentation entitled \x26#8220;missions and knowledge production\x26#8221; and having  summoned water bottles and moved everyone around, ask the assembled  throng in the Omduran Room what they want to do. \x3cimg src=\x22http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxlj8takcY1qcsgne.jpg\x22/\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eBy a unanimous show of hands they indicate a desire to continue and we ultimately finish at 7pm in time for a Knowledge Cafe.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eThe audience listens attentively and I get a lot of positive feedback.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eAt  the Knowledge Cafe I lead a \x26#8216;table\x26#8217; of young Sudanese women who are  keeping up the pace.\u00a0 The session eventually ends at 8.30pm some 12  hours after the day began.\u00a0 It is an indication of things to come over  the following two days (and nights).\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3c/blockquote\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eThe  Conference Chair Gada Kadoda, a woman of astonishing capacity and  vision, has assembled an impressive array of speakers and presentations:  from Washington to Malaysia via the UK with a big representation from  Africa. I have two presentations to give and as it transpires to  facilitate the closing conference session on Saturday morning before a caravan of minibuses sets off in search of the Sudanese Pyramids.\u00a0 \u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eOver  the next week or so I will be drawing on some of the conversations and  highlighting examples of knowledge at work in Africa; for now here are  some high level thoughts after 3 days of the conference.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3eTechnology I the ongoing sanctions means that some of the essential  foundations for a dynamic knowledge society are absent. Software and  hardware are in plentiful supply but access to the latest upgrades are  restricted and effective support is difficult to come by even though  maintance is included in the original purchase. \x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3ee-commerce is constrained by the lack of an effective payment  platform such as PayPal which is restricted.\u00a0 While the new regulators  can plan for a time when the situation returns to normality by setting  up the distribution network now, it means they are unable to encourage  the growth of an industry that would facilitate a faster move towards a  knowledge based economy. To illustrate the importance of e-commerce,  figures just released show that over 30% of all purchases over the  holiday period in the US were conducted online. \x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eCommunications I the size of Sudan makes the laying of cable  impractical; cell phone usage represents a high percentage of the  communications media and some 22 million people have mobile devices  (over 2/3 of the population).\u00a0 \u00a0 \x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eKnowledge (and information)  sharing I \x26#8216;my data is my soul\x26#8217; is a phrase oft repeated. It illustrates  more than any other the challenges organisations face in encouraging  professionals to part with what they know.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eKnowledge Management I  is a discipline that\x26#8217;s attracting interest yet their are a fair share  of cynics especially among those who seek substantive method and  measurement. A  number of prominent organizations have initiatives in train and like the  citiens of many developing countries certification programmes are  highly sought after. The term remains a deterrent for some and Knowledge  Sharing was more readily endorsed.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eCollaboration I group work is an accepted part of the culture and  there is no reluctance to act as the spokesperson for the group or in expressing ideas and  opinions. Most people have a Facebook account of sorts yet few have heard of TripAdvisor! \x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eFood I plays a huge role in lubricating tongues. But everyone sits down at  the first opportunity which tends to restrict conversation to those in the immediate circle.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eStories travel I in the past the travellers (or Bedouin) were the  custodians of stories, today that role is being increasing filled by  online connectivity which places an emphasis on effective means of  collection, storage and dissemination.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp\x3eI had the pleasure of  working alongside/talking to a number of Sudanese graduates and  undergraduates a number of whom presented papers on Wednesday. Two in  particular interested me: one was about a process of measuring the  effectiveness of km in a private company; the other an annual attempt at  knowledge transfer by the students to rural areas in which they\x26#8217;d  identified and engaged with a local stakeholder who became their voice  and ears.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3ePerhaps though the highlight was interacting with so  many people for  whom the sharing of knowledge is critical for survival; where  information that stays in someone\x26#8217;s head or laptop might save lives;  where different techniques are needed to get the stakeholder buyin and  ensure sustainability.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3eAs the flight is about to depart, more later in the week.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3estory practice note, third and final part\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cp\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/14268401460%20\x22 target=\x22_self\x22\x3eIn which we explore the \x26#8216;felts\x26#8217; of stakeholder points of view, Who am I stories, metaphorical equipment, small stories that make a big difference, story listening, finding practice partner, and a few useful references to go exploring in. We end with collectors template.\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3estakeholders\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThe word stakeholder is dangerously abstract, and there\u2019s a tendency to see\u00a0stakeholders as an amorphous blob, or as an abstract, or even menacing\u00a0concept. But unless you know, quite precisely, who you are talking to, how do\u00a0you know the best ways of getting them to hear what you\u2019d like them to hear?\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAs well as having listened well, you need to hold your audience in mind, and\u00a0have them know that you can see and hear them.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIn one piece of work we did recently, we invited people to get right under the\u00a0skin of a frontline member of staff \u2013 imagine their name, age, country of origin,\u00a0where they lived, what they looked liked, weighed, what they wore, what\u00a0football team they supported, their family circumstances, how they felt about\u00a0where they worked and their job today, how it had changed, what kept them\u00a0awake at night, what their dreams were.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eWe invited people, in pairs, to step into, and inhabit, the bodies and shoes of\u00a0their \u2018factional\u2019 characters (we called them factional because people pieced\u00a0together their characters from actual personalities at work). What started as a\u00a0bit of joke, even a bit of a caricature, surprised and moved people, sometimes\u00a0almost shockingly so, as they came to understand, and feel for themselves, \u00a0the circumstances people \u00a0were facing and the threat that certain changes posed to their stability and\u00a0wellbeing.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u00a0This is pretty much like most user profiling work, especially that done in agile technology design and development, or like the characters the BBC uses to check its radio station brand tunings, but it seems to surprise people and is worth remembering. The \u2018what would Wolf say\u2019 technique I blogged about recently is another way to use narrative techniques to bring stakeholders into the room. The different here is that we are taking it right into what David Bohm calls \u2018felts\u2019: the imaginary felt experience. The \u2018felts\u2019 are very powerful indeed. Another imagined \u2018felt\u2019 that can help change angles and perspectives comes from techniques like those used to work with museum objects: imagine your point of view as the chair on which this spy was assassinated.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA really felt sense of what it feels like to stand in the\u00a0shoes of your listener will allow the story to shape\u00a0itself so that the nature of the telling fits the\u00a0circumstances.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAnnette Simmons, in her book \u2018Who Tells the Best Story Wins\u2019 calls this the \u2018I\u00a0know what you are thinking\u2019 story, which sounds quite confrontational but really\u00a0means that you have a vivid internal sense of your audience, and hold that sense\u00a0very present in your mind\u2019s eye as you tell the story.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA white back I attended a graduation ceremony dressed in the kind of mediaeval\u00a0pomp and circumstance which the newest, as much as the oldest, universities\u00a0prize so greatly. Most of the speeches washed right over me and I spent a couple\u00a0of hours listening to the names, sizing up the shoes and walks of the graduates\u00a0as they walked the red carpet to and away from the handshake, and figuring out\u00a0what degree most appealed to me (Arabic and English, closely followed by War\u00a0and Conflict Studies). Then I sat up and listened, as the final speech started like\u00a0this:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cem\x3e\u2018I\u2019ve been sitting here watching the looks on your faces, and they tell a range of\u00a0stories \u2013 joy, wonder, pride and, in at least one case, astonishment\u2019\x3c/em\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eHe saw them. You knew he\u2019d seen them (whether he\u2019d planned the speech or\u00a0not) and you could tell by the shift in the sense and temperature of the hall that\u00a0they relaxed a little, secure in the knowledge that he\u2019d seen them. He had their\u00a0listening ears. Recently I heard a bravura performance of the same kind from Greg Dyke at my daughter\u2019s graduation. He managed, somehow, to acknowledge everyone in the room, as if personally.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThe advantage of having shifted the balance of your time and effort towards\u00a0listening is that you\u2019ll already have done a lot of the work to find the shape and\u00a0size of feelings of the people you are encountering. It will also help you find\u00a0ways to step into their shoes without needing to accept their point of view.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ea note on \u2018story in a word\u2019\x3c/strong\x3e (with thanks to Madelyn Blair\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOne good way into showing people you\u2019ve seen them can be to acknowledge the\u00a0mountain of rusting jargon lying between you. It stops you really approaching\u00a0each other and getting close. Outcomes and outputs and deliverables and\u00a0milestones and silos and blue sky and out-of-the-box thinking and plates needing\u00a0to be stepped up to and high horses that need to be stepped down off.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eValues\u00a0like integrity, accountability, transparency, community spirit, innovation,\u00a0perhaps spiced with courage (Standard Chartered) and heart (BT) or\u00a0neighbourliness (UN charter). All of this clutters the conversation space and\u00a0at the same time provides people with tactical defenses, places to hide or\u00a0something handy to lob into the conversation as a diversionary tactic.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eStory in a word can help (and also pre-empts a little the next section on Who\u00a0Am I stories). It\u2019s a way of reclaiming words and infusing them with the\u00a0collective sense of the stories of people as the examples in the margin\u00a0illustrate.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eHere are some ways of using that technique, whether it\u2019s in, say, an anecdote circle, starting with a blandk sheet of paper or a trigger story, or as a research question, even on postcards:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018I know we throw the word transparency about and\u00a0I\u2019m not always sure we mean the same things or even\u00a0think we know what it means. Tell me a little bit\u00a0about a time when you\u2019ve seen transparency at work\u00a0in this partnership or another partnership and it\u2019s\u00a0felt like a good thing to you \u2013 so I can get a bit of a\u00a0handle on how you\u2019re thinking about the word in this\u00a0context too.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOr\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018Yes, it\u2019s a bit hackneyed to talk about innovation in\u00a0this context, I have to agree. But maybe if I tell you\u00a0about something that\u2019s happening in another project\u00a0that feels innovative to us, that might help a bit?\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOr\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018It\u2019s the word \u2018authority\u2019 that clouds the issue about\u00a0what we do. Let me tell you a small story about that\u00a0word in action so that you can get more of a feel for\u00a0what I have in mind and see what stories it calls to mind.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIf you want to find out more about it, you\u2019ll find a version of it in the SDC story guide in the publications here.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\u2026and a note on metaphorical equipment\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eGood strong metaphors can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you too. They can\u00a0find you a space between you and your audience in which to start a fresh\u00a0conversation. So having energetically de-cluttered, you\u2019ll have room to start\u00a0using a new vocabulary, more precisely chosen to build a shared meaning\u00a0between you and others. It\u2019s worth remembering, too, that metaphors can do a\u00a0lot more work than dressing things up. On occasion they change the course of\u00a0innovation.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA small recent example of analogy and metaphor leading directly to invention is something I picked up out of the free evening newspaper, the Metro: \u00a0the nozzles used inside Hewlett-Packard printer cartridges.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThe idea of these is\u00a0being redeveloped to help drug delivery and pain management.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOne of my favourite examples comes from Jonathan Miller in his wonderful book of essays about organs of the body.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThe heart was\u00a0only seen as a pump when the combustion engine had been invented and was\u00a0being used in sixteenth century mining, fire fighting and civil engineering.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eScientific progress in both cases, and many others, comes as a direct\u00a0consequence of what Jonathan Miller calls in \u2018The Body in Question\u00a0\u2018metaphorical equipment\u2019. It took about 1500 years from first investigations into\u00a0the heart until the analogies moved from lamps and smelter\u2019s furnaces, through\u00a0technological invention in an entirely different place, that a plausible analogy\u00a0for the operation of the heart gave scientists a new take on things.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eMax Boisot has written some good books on knowledge and information\u00a0management. He comes from a background in architectural practice that\u00a0he applies to the space he calls the information space. He talks about the\u00a0continuum between conversation and commodity (i.e. between informal\u00a0encounters and formalized exchange). But, says Max, the real moment of\u00a0invention and insight is when you take something from one setting and put it\u00a0into a new setting as a trigger to new thought. He calls this abstraction, and I\u00a0don\u2019t need to bother with it much more here, as this isn\u2019t a knowledge\u00a0management paper, but it may be useful background.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThis isn\u2019t to say that every metaphor or analogy will lead to transformation and\u00a0invention, but it is to say that a well-chosen metaphor or analogy (or story) has\u00a0a great deal more power than you may appreciate. Equally, a poorly chosen, or\u00a0clich\u00e9d metaphor can close minds and end fruitful conversations. The balance is\u00a0delicate.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ewho am I stories -\u00a0Stripping off your organisational mask.\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAnnette Simmons also talks about the \u2018Who Am I Story\u2019, which is just as\u00a0important. Look at any inspirational leader \u2013 Obama, Clinton, Mandela, or many\u00a0people close to home who inspire you daily in quieter ways \u2013 and look at the\u00a0pattern of their storytelling. You may get a polished version of the person, but\u00a0with great leaders you\u2019ll get a sense of them standing there, willing to be\u00a0themselves, to see you and to accept the consequences.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA little while ago I had to step in at short notice for a colleague to run a workshop at a\u00a0European investment bank, re-assessing their internal communication strategy\u00a0in the light of the financial crisis. I was a stranger with no particular background\u00a0in internal communications. Somehow I had to find a way to get them to give\u00a0me permission to run the day. So I said\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018I was thinking on the plane over how much of a sense of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu I had coming\u00a0here. 20 years ago, I was sitting in front of the US and UK regulators trying to\u00a0persuade them that index futures and portfolio insurance hadn\u2019t caused the\u00a0crash; 10 years ago I was part of an investment bank that was imploding because\u00a0of poor governance systems. Here I am now, and I feel as if I\u2019m in the same\u00a0story that\u2019s been going on for 20 years.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e86 words. So let\u2019s say one minute of talking time. Maybe two.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eWhat did I say? I said, in essence, you can trust me. I might not be a\u00a0communications expert, but I really am familiar with the territory you are in\u00a0and the challenges you face, because I\u2019ve been there. So I can be helpful to\u00a0you. I\u2019d say it took me the best part of three hours to arrive at those 86 words!\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eSometimes the Who Am I story might be offered to\u00a0reassure. For example in a recent piece of research\u00a0about transformation programmes, one interviewee\u00a0spoke of the need to restructure the business and\u00a0the importance, in delivering this message, of being\u00a0able to stand there and say\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018We, the leadership team, are experienced. I\u2019ve\u00a0done this before. It ain\u2019t easy, but I know what I\u2019m\u00a0doing, and you\u2019re in safe hands, even if we have to\u00a0make tough decisions.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThat\u2019s a Who Am I story. Small, delicate, carefully\u00a0judged reassurance that allows the listener to see\u00a0and relate to the teller.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThis is the kind of thing that Doug Lipman is so good at coaching people at. Try his story in a box, if personal storytelling skills is something you want to develop.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e*small stories that say a lot*\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eFinally we have arrived at the telling part and are back to\u00a0Svend-Erik\u2019s pebbles.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eWhat kind of stories are you telling?\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eI\u2019d suggest you aim mostly for small, serviceable moments\u00a0that you can collect swiftly and easily, share lightly that\u00a0will go quite deep and open up new spaces for the listener\u00a0and between you and the listener.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ea gate in the fence\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eI\u2019m reminded of a small firm of female architects I met years ago who\u2019d\u00a0describe the distinctive qualities of their firm along these lines:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018We were doing a project for a primary school recently, who wanted to create\u00a0a closer link between the building they had and the building next door that\u00a0they\u2019d just bought to enlarge their reception intake. We looked at all kinds of\u00a0structural solutions, and in the end we recommended a gate in the fence that\u00a0ran between the two gardens.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIn the smallest, most miniature sketch, a whole picture is painted of the values\u00a0of the firm and what they stand for.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIt\u2019s these kind of miniatures that you\u2019re equipping yourself with. Perhaps it\u00a0helps to imagine these as small pebbles that you can throw into a conversation,\u00a0whose effect can ripple outwards.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eWho can tell the shortest story? Stuck in a pub,\u00a0this story won a bet for Ernest Hemingway:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018For sale. Baby shoes. Never worn.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIt\u2019s become a kind of cult with competitions happening quite regularly to find a story in six words.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3efrom bat droppings to getting bums on seats\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eNatural England found just this when they recently created a management and\u00a0staff briefing session about the story of knowledge at Natural England. They\u00a0wanted to find conversation-starting anecdotes that would illustrate different\u00a0aspects of knowledge Natural England people use to get the job done. A handful\u00a0of people kept \u2018decision journals\u2019 for a week, then picked one decision that had\u00a0been particularly tricky, to describe in a bit more detail.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eNine or so typical circumstances were turned into tiny tales \u2013 one- or two minute\u00a0conversation starters. They ranged from detailed knowledge about bat\u00a0dropping which affected the timing on plans for disabled parking at a local\u00a0wildlife trust to figuring out how to get the right-sized chairs into a parish hall\u00a0just ahead of a meeting about a parish plan (and in so doing drawing on a\u00a0previous life as a roadie).\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThe bigger story that these nine tales tell is that the knowledge it takes to put\u00a0Natural England into a role of active advocacy ranges from individual,\u00a0professional expertise and operational experience to personal confidence in\u00a0handling networks, to being able to hold a line in a tricky and emotional\u00a0situation. That\u2019s an easier story to hear, and see your part in as a member of\u00a0staff, if you can see it through the kaleidoscope lens of a series of small\u00a0vignettes.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3edecisions \x26amp; dilemmas\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA footnote on method here. We used a tool we call decision journals to prompt people to recall decisions they made, and reflect on them. We thought that tricky decisions would, naturally,\u00a0lead to an interesting range of knowledge and\u00a0expertise that told a good story, where asking\u00a0questions about knowledge would have been a bit\u00a0more obscure.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eThis is a pretty good test of where a good story might\u00a0lie too \u2013 where\u2019ve you been stuck a bit, and what you\u00a0did to get unstuck is normally a good starting point\u00a0for digging about for the story behind the\u00a0stuckness`.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eBoth these ways of asking questions also provide a human scale of telling which helps with retelling. In more elaborate settings, Gary Klein\u2019s critical decision method probes the same kind of territory, but do you also need to balance your collecting with what you plan to do with the collection, and try and size things so that you are neither stretching thin material too far or squashing intricate stories into forms that they burst out of.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ean old tea caddy\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA small object is another way to tell a big story too, sometimes a very moving\u00a0one. At a \u00a0workshop a few years back we were exploring the role of archives in today\u2019s business\u00a0innovation and knowledge transfer, the John Lewis archivist bought a series of\u00a0objects from their archive. One in particular is a battered old metal tea caddy\u00a0with coins fused to the base. It was the staff tea money collection box and was\u00a0retrieved from the bombed ruins of the store in the 1940s.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIt\u2019s used today to convey to staff the message\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018Look, we were bombed to rubble only 60 years ago. And look at John Lewis\u00a0today. If we can survive that, we can survive this credit crunch.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eTo help you start this process, and order your thoughts and noticings, we\u2019ve\u00a0attached a story sheet at thee end which can help you catalogue\u00a0some of the more essential small stories that you find yourself collecting and\u00a0wanting to use.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3esurprise and insignificant details\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eA couple of things can really help with organisational stories that tend towards\u00a0the dull and predictable:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3eSomething people didn\u2019t see coming \u2013 this could be in the way you reveal the\u00a0story, or parts of it, including your own reactions, or it could be in the\u00a0unintended consequences.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eInsignificant details (a striking image, colour, texture, a smell, a small\u00a0object that plays a role), give the listener something to hook onto that\u00a0help them carry the story with them. (Appreciative Enquiry is big on insignificant details, and they\u2019re a great social connector too, if the question is posed in groups in a workshop as the details become, in turn, a kind of mnemonic for remembering stories and the people who told them.)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018We were helping the islands build new roads, and of\u00a0course they helped speed up vegetables to market\u00a0and so on. What we didn\u2019t expect when we started\u00a0was to be providing young ex-offenders with a way\u00a0back into the workplace through highway\u00a0maintenance.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e(There\u2019s a danger here to watch out for: what might seem surprising to you is something I\u2019m already very familiar with. So, from the same sector. I might think that the leapfrogging of telephony over other technologies in Afghanistan and the power it gives to women, or to children to learn, or to people do to their banking, is interesting, but to everyone in the developing world, it\u2019s normal and I look silly making too much of it.)\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3efinding a practice partner\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eYou\u2019ll need to be vigilant at this point and most probably you\u2019ll need to cast\u00a0around for help from someone who can help you surgically remove all reportwriting\u00a0and organisational jargon. As you\u2019re acclimatized to it, it\u2019s a lot harder\u00a0than you think for you to do this alone. Find someone to sit down with and\u00a0fumble your way through the first couple of tellings.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eHere\u2019s a set of instructions you can give them, adapted again from Svend-Erik\u00a0Engh that the invited listener can use to provide feedback.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\u00a0Thank the teller for telling the story.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eSay something nice about the way it was told.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eTell the teller of the clearest picture in the story: your strongest image or\u00a0memory left after listening to the story.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eComment on what have you\u2019ve heard and understood from the story.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eAsk if the response was useful and so invite the teller\u2019s feedback on your\u00a0feedback.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAppreciation of a story can be global:\u00a0\u2018I love the way you tell the story.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOr it can be specific:\u00a0\u2018I really liked the moment when she opened the\u00a0restaurant.\u2019\u00a0\u2018I could smell the mangos at the roadside.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3eBRIO\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eDoug Lipman, who has great tips and hints to offer for becoming a confident and\u00a0easy teller, also has a very neat trick for helping remember stories and having\u00a0them readily to hand. He calls this BRIO: Brief Recollection of Image Order. Of\u00a0course it\u2019s nothing more than sequencing the order in which you want to retell a\u00a0story with a mnemonic series of images, but it\u2019s a neat trick and one worth\u00a0remembering for more formal occasions.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3esliding anecdotes into place\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAt this point you need to throw away every last scrap of the residue of that last\u00a0communications training day (tell them what you\u2019re going to tell them, tell\u00a0them, then tell them what you\u2019ve told them). No. Just don\u2019t.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eFirstly you need to even think about whether to signal to people that you know\u00a0you\u2019re telling a story. It might be right.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018Let me give you an example so that you can get a feel for it\u2019.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eBut how much more interesting to creep up on them and surprise them:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018You know, coming here, I ran over a fox, and that suddenly got me thinking\u00a0about how vulnerable we all are to being hit by something we didn\u2019t see\u00a0coming\u2026\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018I wonder if you all remember that time a few years back when x did y\u2026\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018That brings to mind a meeting we were having the other day. Maybe it\u2019s worth\u00a0me taking a few minutes to tell you what happened there.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eI do find that being studiedly inconsequential is very useful on most occasions.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eIt appears not to place too heavy a demand on your listener, inviting them to\u00a0come to what you\u2019re offering in their own time and way.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAbove all, you need to be yourself and you need to tell stories that have\u00a0meaning for you. If it doesn\u2019t mean anything to you, why are you telling it?\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAnd why should it matter to the person you are telling it to?\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ethe traces of the storyteller\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOf course, there are situations in which you need to craft something a bit\u00a0sturdier, longer, more studied, that will command attention. These are the\u00a0kinds of stories you can craft over time as your distinctive practice takes shape.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAnd for this, it\u2019s useful to end by going back to Walter Benjamin:\u00a0\u2018The storytelling that thrives for a long time in the milieu of work \u2013 the rural,\u00a0the maritime, and the urban \u2013 is itself an artisan form of communication, as it\u00a0were. It does not aim to convey the pure essence of the thing, like information,\u00a0or a report. It sinks the thing into the life of the storyteller, in order to bring it\u00a0out of him again. Thus traces of the storyteller cling to the story the way the\u00a0handprints of the potter cling to the clay vessel.\u2019\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eYou don\u2019t need to wear the hard work on the\u00a0outside. The more the story appears to have arrived,\u00a0as if by chance, in an unsignalled way, the less\u00a0you\u2019re instructing people to react in a particular way\u00a0and inviting them to choose to see and hear you and\u00a0encounter you differently.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\u2018Why,\u2019 said the Dodo, \u2018the best way to explain\u00a0it is to do it.\u2019 Lewis Carroll.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3efurther reading, listening and watching\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3eShawn Callahan and Mark Schenk at Anecdote in Australia have a very\u00a0practical and engaging website, bursting with useful resources.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eAnnette Simmons who founded Group Process Consulting in the 1980\u2019s as\u00a0written two handy books and her website has useful resources on it too.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u2018Building bridge using narrative techniques\u2019 has lots of useful techniques and\u00a0can be downloaded from the publications in the story section here\u00a0\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u2018Using story to carve out spaces in which the organisation can start to\u00a0breathe\u2019 by Victoria Ward, from an edition of AI practitioner edited by\u00a0Natalie Shell in February 2008. is also available here\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eSmart Meme has some useful resources and worksheets for campaigning and\u00a0activist organisations, of which \u2018The Battle of the Stories\u2019 is a particularly\u00a0useful one.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eDoug Lipman is an experienced storyteller and teacher who has plenty o\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3epragmatic tips and ideas to offer.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eSharing the stories of the Cairngorms National Park \u2013 a guide to interpreting\u00a0the area\u2019s distinct character and coherent identity. This is a great guide,\u00a0whose principles can be applied in other settings\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u2018The Storyteller\u2019 by Walter Benjamin was written between the wars. It\u2019s the\u00a0best single thing I\u2019ve ever read about storytelling.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eAnd three useful books of theoretical context:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3eKen Gergen \u2018An invitation to social construction\u2019 (Sage Publications 1999)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eLewis Hyde \u2018The Gift\u2019 (Vintage Books, 1983)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u00a0Karl Weick, \u2018Sense making in Organisations\u2019 (Sage Publications 1992)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eFour places to go to spring the imagination:\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3eDavid Lynch\u2019s Interview project is good fuel for\u00a0the imagination about how to make room for the\u00a0ordinary to become extraordinary.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u2018Geldof in Africa\u2019 8 Audio CD boxset published by\u00a0the BBC, reference, BBC71850, is a tour de forceof storytelling (whether you care for Geldof or\u00a0not, which I don\u2019t)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\u2018Stuart: a life backwards\u2019 by Alexander Masters,\u00a0is structurally interesting for the way it weaves\u00a0the forward journey of the author with the\u00a0reverse journey of his subject, makes a\u00a0predictable story surprising and demanding and\u00a0carries the reader through a complex large story\u00a0too.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3eThe incidental is a multi-disciplinary network\u00a0founded by sound artist David Gunn which plays\u00a0with soundscapes and storytelling in challenging\u00a0new ways.\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3estory sheet\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3ecatchy name\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3emain time and place of events\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3ethis is about a time when\u2026(one sentence)\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3ethemes and keywords\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3emain emotion\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3enotes about how you could use\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3ethis story\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3ewhat happened\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3etexture and detail that will help\u00a0you craft the story\u00a0\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3efor the record: any other people,\u00a0materials, evidence or stories that\u00a0could tell you more\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3efieldnotes on what has happened when you\u2019ve tried to retell the story in different settings\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3ethe art of the narrative enquirer\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/14265666880%20\x22 target=\x22_self\x22\x3eA detour before the third and final part of the story practice note. I\x26#8217;ve been writing up narrative method and thought it might be useful to share this piece. It comes from a thing I wrote for Sage Publications a few years back, with some amendments. I\x26#8217;m relieved to find it seems to stand the test of time as a decent method statement.\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standfirst\x22\x3e\x26#8216;In any research topic, there are two overarching questions that have to be addressed:\u00a0 what is the object of the enquiry and how can it be enquired into\x26#8217; |\u00a0\x3cstrong\x3eHollway, W \x26amp; Jefferson T |\x3c/strong\x3e\x3cem\x3eDoing Qualitative Research Differently:Free association, narrative and the interview method\x3c/em\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standfirst\x22\x3eNarrative enquiry seeks to emerge episodes and materials which might illuminate a greater whole.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Standfirst\x22\x3eThe narrative enquirer is often regarded as a \u2018fellow traveller\u2019 (Gabriel 2000) with insiders in the organization, even if only on a short journey. Paying careful attention to use of\u00a0anecdotes, metaphor, language and symbol, to what is not said, to the context in which it is said, creates insight into the qualities of an experience which are not immediately accessible to the subject through their own literal interpretation of an experience and the meaning it holds for them. A goal is to pull the raw material right through the process.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eDocumentation of the collecting process needs to thorough, (audio, video, email exchanges, journals, fieldnotes, diaries, bulletins, images, and the objects which are created (reports, essays, oral materials) need to travel and do work beyond the immediate remit of the assignment, with both predictable and unpredictable results, while not compromising privacy or confidentiality.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eOne challenge in the enquiry is how truth is compromised by the storytellers motivations, memory and anxiety. Another is that people will tend to recall the extraordinary, the vivid and the luminous\u00a0 not the ordinary, the mundane and the banal, so routines are overlooked.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eThere are particular, ironic, challenges in narrative research, in that the tendency is to recall a well-rehearsed story. And a well-rehearsed story or \u2018whole\u2019 episode is likely to contain drama. Indeed the insight we seek may not qualify, in the mind of the subject, as a story at all. So we need to look for gaps and hidden qualities and apparent \u2018nothings\u2019, as well as the more evident something which story-seeking questions throw up.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22p1\x22\x3eThere is something beyond the \u2018nothings\u2019 which is the hiddens, and these may, or may not be, easy or appropriate to identify.\u00a0 In his book\u00a0\x3cem\x3eThe Gate of the Sun\x3c/em\x3e\u00a0Elias Khoury weaves together true life stories of Lebanese refugee camps into a fictional setting.\u00a0 At one point, the narrator is talking to a someone in a coma and he says \x26#8216;You only spoke about one woman, and even that one you only talked about a little. Piecing the tale together and arranging or scattered sentences, I turned it into a story. But you only mentioned love incidentally. You jumped over the essential story as though it was a pool and you were afraid of drowning.\x26#8217;\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22p1\x22\x3eThis can happen with narrative research too. Sometimes, interviewees will jump over the essential story \u2018as though it was a pool\u2019 and the interviewer must judge whether it is appropriate to pay attention to this or not.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eResearchers cannot be detached but must examine subjective involvement to help to shape the way in which they interpret the interview data and other materials.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eSometimes fiction and fantasy, or imagery or metaphor might be a better way to access or convey difficult issues but are easier for sponsors to reject out of hand if it feels too counter cultural.\u00a0\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eThere is also the temptation for the enquirer to draw on other observations, outside the actual product of the interviews between researcher and subject.\u00a0 There needs to be agreement as to the degree to which inference is valid or peripheral vision \u2013 things noticed which creep beyond the scope of the specific piece of research \u2013 should be permitted. Clandinin and Connelly (2000) are very encouraging about completely situating the enquirer and encouraging them to journal and interpret. Embracing, but putting a careful boundary round, subjective interpretation, while making room for a shared view to emerge is an important, role that articulating the enquiry as narrative can make methodologically.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eIn addition, the positioning of the researchers needs to be considered. They need to be seen as clearly kinds of episodes collected through narrative research are, in part, skewed by the assumption of an authority figure and the relationship of the subject (or the enquirers) with faceless authority figures in general. Censorship and self-censorship arising from denial or partial perceptions, are often compounded by assumptions by the interviewee, in organisational settings, as to the sponsor, the sponsor\u2019s real, as opposed to espoused, intentions, and the seriousness with which they as subjects of the enquiry will be paid attention to, so there are often politics or gaming, intentional or unintentional, in what\u2019s being shared.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eThe challenges of developing consistent standards in this kind of approach are compounded by Sparknow\u2019s particular leaning towards collaborative enquiry, often working in partnership with untrained volunteers in the client to build a sharper provocation and a deeper set of insights, while risking a more uneven, subjective and rawer approach. We take the view that this kind of situated learning has a value in its own right.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eThere is also a significant question of reality, truth and meaning. In qualitative and quantitative research it might be fair to say that you assume the subject knows himself well, has an accurate memory, can convey knowledge to a strange listener and is motivated to tell the truth. In our experience this is rarely the case. Often the processes associated with the whole of the working activity are regarded by the worker as subordinate to the \u2018real\u2019 parts of the work. Another challenge is that the holder of the experience can be genuinely unaware of their own filters and assumptions and so can only convey part of the experience, even with an experienced interviewer or sound process.\u00a0 Finally, as we\u2019ve mentioned, there\u2019s a tendency towards the dramatic, or to the inert and the indifferent.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Quote\x22\x3eThis is a thing the organisation has done to me, and look what it\u2019s doing to me.I told them all this when the put the system in.\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eSo there\u2019s an abdication of responsibility for process and so for giving a truthful rendition. Outsiders are shiny, interesting and a new channel for grievance, or they are to be paid lip-service to, because they can make no dent and will pass on, leaving the same on stuff in place.\u00a0 So the enquirer needs to be alert to the motives of participants in sharing particular aspects of the organization or their take on things.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eThe art, in crafting an intervention and decided how to thread narrativeness through its components, is to have enough of an early sense of the clients and the networks through which one must work, to\u00a0create a firmly anchored but vivid place of engagement, reassuring, but with enough surprise shot through it that it interrupts (a narrative device in itself) expectation and draws people in despite themselves.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eClandinin, D Jean \x26amp; Donnelly, F Michael, Narrative Inquiry: Experience and Story in Qualitative Research, Jossey-Bass, 2000,\u00a0 San Francisco\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eHollway, Wendy \x26amp; Jefferson, Tony \x26#8216;Doing qualitative research differently: free association, narrative and the interview method\x26#8217; Sage Publications, 2000, London\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22Text\x22\x3eGabriel, Yiannis, Storytelling in Organizations: Facts, Fictions, and Fantasies, OUP 2000, NY\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a        \x0a            \x3cli class=\x22tumblr_post tumblr_text_post\x22\x3e\x0a                \x0a                    \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_title\x22\x3ea story practice note, part 2\x3c/div\x3e\x0a                \x0a                \x0a                \x3cdiv class=\x22tumblr_body\x22\x3e\x0a                    \x3cp\x3e\x3ca href=\x22http://stories-and-organizations.sparknow.net/post/14125538851%20\x22 target=\x22_self\x22\x3eWhat follows is a toolkit partly disguised as a reminiscence Don\x26#8217;t be fooled. Everything that\x26#8217;s said here has beentried and tested to breaking point. It can be guaranteed togive satisfaction if you give it a go. The main points are:\x3c/a\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eOrganisations are made up of people, people tell and listen to stories all the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etime, so organisations are stories.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eA discerning and planned use of story will help you get your job done, and be\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3every satisfying to you personally.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eListening to stories is the place to start.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eCollecting raw materials is a daily practice and can be quite surprising.\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eFinding ways of telling people who you are and letting them know that you\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ecan see who they are and what keeps them awake at night keeps it person to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eperson, and that\u2019s where the space for a story needs to sit.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhen sifting materials to craft stories, it\u2019s worth looking out for a few juicy\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eadjectives, a handy metaphor and an insignificant detail or two that will\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ehelp you draw in the listener and act as a quick reminder for you.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eLast and certainly not least, you don\u2019t need to be an accomplished\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eperformer; in fact, the less of a performer you are, and the more you see\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eyourself as a host, or custodian, or curator, the more you\u2019ll contribute.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3ewhen might you want to use stories at work?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThere are lots of reasons when you might want consciously to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eintroduce stories and anecdotes in a work setting.\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eUse stories to:\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3epersuade, to carry people with you\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3econvey ideas, springboard the imagination about what\u2019s possible\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eilluminate a dense analysis\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ehandle a difficult situation\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eallow more points of view to be seen, not just \u2018us\u2019 and \u2018them\u2019\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eplace something in its larger geographic, organisational or historical context\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eshow people that you can see, and empathize with them\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eshow people who you are, as the teller, so they can relate to you\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3einvite people to see that you\u2019re a good travelling companion\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eshare experiences that help people learn from your successes and failures,\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ealmosts and not quitea\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eacknowledge the negative stories out there and by acknowledging, defuse\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etheir power\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eopen up a new conversation space by introducing a story from elsewhere\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThere are some things you might want to avoid too:\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0sob stories or defensive justifications\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3estories of power and control, thinly disguised\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eas democratic\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3estories that trump or compete with the stories\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eof others\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eways of telling that tell people what to think\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ebackfiring anecdotes\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eproviding too much family detail\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eculturally excluding others in the room with\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3especific references (see backfiring anecdotes)\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethe story/action gap: \u2018why doesn\u2019t your mouth\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etell your eyes that\u2019\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3etaking a story told to you in private and circulating\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eit thoughtlessly\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3etelling over-rehearsed stories that have lost their\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3epower to move you \u2013 your listener won\u2019t be moved\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eif you not\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eimagining you are telling a story when you\u2019re not\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3efilling the airtime with your stories rather than\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3elistening\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3estarting with the raw materials\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe most important first step in telling good stories is not the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etelling. That comes pretty much last. Tuning in, looking\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3earound and seeing what there is lying around in your work life\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eand the working lives of others, or the stories of your\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3estakeholders is a great starting point. It gives you a chance to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3enotice more acutely what makes a good story and when and\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ewhere it does the job. It\u2019s also an opportunity to collect\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ecolour and texture that help you shape stories and anecdotes.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eRecently I\x26#8217;ve been introduced the delights of Georges Perec, who urges, in his absolutely brilliant \x26#8216;Species fo Spaces\x26#8217; \u00a0a different kind of witnessing\x26#8230;.\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3e.\x26#8217;\x3c/span\x3e\x3cem\x3eNote down what you can see\u00a0\u2026 Nothing strikes you. You don\u2019t know how to see.\u00a0You must set about it more slowly, almost stupidly.\u00a0Force yourself to write down what is of no interest,\u00a0what is most obvious, most common, most colourless\u00a0\u2026 Force yourself to see more \ufb02atly \u2026\x26#8217;\x3c/em\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThere\u2019s a Danish storyteller called Svend-Erik Engh who suggests that\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eorganisational stories should be less like the buffed and polished gems of\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eorganisational case studies, and more like the driftwood, pebbles and shells you\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3emight pick up as you wander down the beach or along a river bank \u2013 something\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethat appeals to you, that you\u2019d like to have for a while, that you\u2019ll eventually\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eput back down and move on from as you comb the place for more things.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eLooking for raw materials for stories is a bit like that, and as your discernment\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eand noticing grows you\u2019ll be surprise how useful almost everything is, whether it\x26#8217;s \x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ean object\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea startling image\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea good story told you to over a sandwich (food is a very good friend of stories)\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3esomething that stuck from the last heated meeting with a disgruntled stakeholder\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea striking and slightly unusual metaphor (certainly not the stifling predictability of the tired cliche)\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea common cultural reference (childhood: Star Wars, topical: True Blood,\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe Wire, West Wing)\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea good proverb or fictional analogy that will bring something to life\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ea surprising sound or detail to snag the imagination of the listener \u2013 what does your organisation sound like at work?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe minuteness of detail can provide all sorts of small ways to build bridges or provide a lintel for the story gateway, doorway or window I talked about in part 1.\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cspan\x3eI\x26#8217;m working with David Gunn of the Incidental just now, on a learning programme to build reflective collaborative practice with WHO project managers, and he\x26#8217;s a great advocate of the unusual angle: lie on the floor to take a picture, or jump on table and look down from above. The same applies to whatever else you are observing and noting down.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eIt\u2019s easier than ever to catch pictures or short videos, or sound clips on your\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ephone as you go about your working day. The found materials that can be\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eassembled into new versions for different settings are lying everywhere in your\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eprivate and professional life, in your childhood memories as much as in what\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eyou\u2019re experiencing today.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3espotting good practices and ideas\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eAs well as foraging for your own raw materials, prick up your ears and listen out for clues for \u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3egood telling among friends and colleagues, but also in other places:\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhat was it that made you stop buttering your toast and listen to the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ejournalist when she was talking about the latest Pakistan suicide bombing?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhy did you get bored half way through the last Hollywood blockbuster?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhat is it about the keynote presentation at the last conference you were at\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethat had you gripped?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhen was the turning point in a sticky meeting with an environmental group\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eand was it a story that lay behind the turn?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhat was it that made you read on past the first sentence of the last junk\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eemail from a dying widow is some obscure African state with millions to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ebequeath you?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eWhich are the brand stories that make you want to read on?\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3eCollect everything.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eOne habit I have is to collect pictures from the ladies wherever I go. Here\x26#8217;s one of my favourites, recently from the WHO.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cimg align=\x22middle\x22 height=\x22500\x22 src=\x22http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lw3tqtt8Mh1qc578m.jpg\x22/\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eWhen Paul Corney and I were in Sudan with the WHO mission last year, I collected the sound of the Minister of Finance in El Fasher walking across the floor of her office: the rasping of shoe on sand paints as vivid a picture as any other one can imagine about the circumstances in which health action is taking place there.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eIf you have 11 hours to spare (a long car journey?) give Bob Geldof\u2019s audio\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eCD \u2018Geldof in Africa\u2019 a go. As an example of sustained telling that draws on an\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eextraordinary range of personal experience and passion, observation, historical\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eresearch, myth, evidence, fact, it\u2019s hard to beat, and it\x26#8217;ll inspire you to take another look at the stories and fragments of raw material lying all around you.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cspan\x3elistening stories out of people\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cem\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u2018The more self forgetful the listener is, the more deeply is\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/em\x3e\x3cem\x3ewhat he listens to impressed on his memory. \x3c/em\x3e\u00a0says\u00a0Walter Benjamin in his brilliant essay on The Storyteller. I was reminded of this recently when passing the window of a shop with videos in it celebrating 150 years of District Nursing. The district nurse\x26#8217;s relationship with the whole farmily is one of warm presence and listening companionably, much as Yiannis Gabriel presses the narrative researcher to do when he says in \x26#8216;Storytelling in organisations\x26#8217; \u00a0\x3cem\x3e\u2018While the researcher may ask for clarification of particular aspects of the story, the storyteller must feel that such clarification is asked in the interest of increased understanding, pleasure and empathy rather than in the form of pedantic enquiry.\u00a0 The metaphor of the researcher as fellow traveler on the storyteller\u2019s narrative suggests an inquisitive quality that combines passivity with activity.\u2019\u00a0\x3c/em\x3e\u00a0\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ebecoming a self-forgetful listener\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eOne of the best ways of finding stories is to listen to other people telling them.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThis has the tremendous advantage of being profoundly satisfying to the person\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ebeing listened to (as it\u2019s quite rare in an institutional setting that you are\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3elistened to with full attention). It also allows you, as the listener, fully to absorb\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eand take in the story shape as part of your own possible repertoire.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x3cstrong\x3eseven ways to grow your story listening\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3eSome of these suggestions come from work we did with Roger Kitchen, who has done lots of work with the British Library, several years back when preparing for an oral history project with the Islamic Development Bank.\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eYou only get what you ask for\u2026 It\u2019s a good idea to have done some groundwork\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethat helps you know the kinds of story you are after and then spot, or make,\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eopportunities to hear, these stories from those you think hold them. Do you\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ewant to know more about how to handle a difficult stakeholder moment\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3e? Are you trying to find out the truth behind how a strategic financial\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eplan was actually implemented, not what was said in the press? Have a plan and\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eseize the opportunity to collect stories both in formal and in informal settings.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eBe interested in everything\u2026 Taking an interest in the smallest detail can draw\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3epeople into richer recollection. Practice unbroken attention that\u2019s culturally\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eappropriate, to establish the necessary rhythms, silences and gestures of\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eencouragement.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eListen, keep hold of clues and don\u2019t interrupt the flow or challenge directly\u2026\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eDon\u2019t see yourself as an interrogator. Remember, you\u2019re not asking for opinions\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eor advice, or offering your own interpretations and stories to improve on what\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eyou are hearing. You are, rather, an active understander, a fellow traveler\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eengaged jointly in an effort with the teller, encouraging the best and most vivid\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etelling out of them.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eAsk questions indirectly, hesitantly, or as probes\u2026 Use your prompts to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eencourage depth and texture, and to fill in the emotional landscape \u2018It sounds\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3elike you must have been pretty scared when she grabbed your collar\u2026\u2019 \u2018I can\u2019t\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3equite get a picture in my head\u2026can you tell me what was going on just before\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethat made him react that way?\u2019\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eRemember the qualities of a good story (memorability, vividness, character,\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etime, place, something happening, feelings evoked), and use this to guide your\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3equestions too \u2018So who else was in the room?\u2019 \u2018Where were you at the time?\u2019\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eRespect the individual\u2026 You may hear the same story from many angles, so it\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ecan be tempting to think you have a better grip on the story than the teller and\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3estop listening. Try to be mindful of your behaviour and control frustration or\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ereticence where it occurs. Always try to be positive and open, and make as few\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eassumptions as possible.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3eHold onto silences\u2026 The power of silence is enormous. Don\u2019t be tempted to\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ejump in or be helpful to the teller. Let the story take its course.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\x3cstrong\x3ejumping over the essential story\x3c/strong\x3e\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eYou\u2019ll notice that these suggestions are a bit at odds with most organisational\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3esettings\u2026and even more unlike a conversation down the pub. All the same, it\u2019s\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eworth trying these practices, which may feel a bit peculiar at first. You\u2019ll be\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3esurprised how delightful the listener finds your solicitude and attention, and the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ebreathing space you offer.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eBe aware, too, of the factors that can affect your attitude\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3etowards a storyteller (and theirs towards you) in the moment:\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cul\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u00a0the person\u2019s age, gender, status, class or personality, and the degree to which this mirrors or differs from your own\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3etheir professional or personal relationship with you\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3cli\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethe \u2018noise\u2019 from other versions of the story\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eknocking about.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/li\x3e\x0a\x3c/ul\x3e\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eAs you become more practiced, you\u2019ll also start to notice the stories that don\u2019t\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eget told. In his book \u2018The Gate of the Sun\u2019 Elias Khoury weaves together truelife\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3estories of Lebanese refugee camps into a fictional setting. At one point, the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3enarrator is talking to someone in a coma and he says\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cem\x3e\x3cspan\x3e\u2018You only spoke about one woman, and even that one you only talked about a\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3elittle. Piecing the tale together and arranging scattered sentences, I turned it\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3einto a story. But you only mentioned love incidentally. You jumped over the\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eessential story as though it were a pool and you were afraid of drowning.\u2019\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/em\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eA lot of stories do get jumped over, and you may piece them together, or leave\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ethem untold. In any case you\u2019ll start to feel a lurking tale that you must decide\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3ewhether to go back round and collect or not.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eFinally, remember that you don\u2019t need to do anything about what you\u2019ve heard.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThis is particularly useful where someone is pushing a story on you to get a\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eresult from you, which stakeholders often will. Your first job is to listen well,\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eonly later do you need to act, or offer other stories that help reshape shared\u00a0\x3c/span\x3e\x3cspan\x3eunderstanding.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3cp class=\x22MsoNormal\x22\x3e\x3cspan\x3eThe next post will look a bit more at story finding and sense making in groups, at making sure you are stepping into the shoes of your stakeholders. I might detour via the Zappos culture book that I picked up from the post office today, and via some more heavy theory on where the narrative practitioner stands, possibly with a bit about derives to keep us on our toes.\x3c/span\x3e\x3c/p\x3e\x0a\x3c!--EndFragment--\x3e\x0a                \x3c/div\x3e\x0a            \x3c/li\x3e\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a\x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a        \x0a\x0a                        \x0a    \x0a\x3c/ol\x3e');