What's Your Story?" Using stories to ignite performance and be more successful is a leaders book. This book is written for people who want to make a difference; people who want to build, create, learn, share, and inspire; people who want to give themselves and others the powerful gift of story. "What's Your Story?" helps leaders enhance their performance by looking at their everyday communications differently. By learning how to use the right stories at the right time - success and failure stories - Craig will show you how to create strong connections with people and with the organization's strategy to enhance your performance.

"As usual these two future-finders have their fi ngers on the pulse of what's happening--and what we need to know about. In every business, in every organization, the seven most important words these days are: 'But wait! A story goes with it!' You need to read this book to fi nd out why." -Alan Webber, Co-founder, "Fast Company "magazine "A great story sparks our imagination, challenges us to think, and resonates with our collective conscience. Ryan Mathews and Watts Wacker's story about telling stories does exactly this. It is an essential guidebook for capturing and conveying the essence of corporate identities and enriching brands." -Paul A. Laudicina, Managing Officer and Chairman of the Board, A.T. Kearney Storytelling is the universal human activity.Every society, at every stage of history, has told stories-and listened to them intently, passionately. Stories are how people tell each other who they are, where they came from, how they're unique, what they believe. Stories capture their memories of the past and their hopes for the future. Stories are one more thing, too: They are your most powerful, most underutilized tool for competitive advantage.Whether you know it or not, your business is already telling stories. What's Your Story? will help you take control of those stories and make them work for you. Legendary business thinkers Ryan Mathews and Watts Wacker reveal how to craft an unforgettable story...create the back story that makes it believable...make sure your story cuts through today's relentless bombardment of consumer messages...and gets heard, remembered, and acted on. THE TEN FUNCTIONS OF STORYTELLING Discovering what stories can do for your business THE ABOLITION OF CONTEXT Telling stories when the past no longer defines the future THE FIVE MOST IMPORTANT STORY THEMES Leveraging themes your audiences will understand and believe APPLIED STORYTELLING 101 Storytelling for your industry, your company, your brand, and you MASTERING YOUR STORYTELLER'S TOOLBOX Making your stories more compelling, more believable, and downright unforgettable Use Storytelling to Gain Powerful Competitive Advantage in Today's Increasingly Skeptical Marketplace Leverage the incredible power of storytelling in marketing, sales, investor relations, recruitment, change management, "and more" Indispensable techniques for every CxO, entrepreneur, and marketing, sales, and communications executive The latest breakthrough book from best-selling futurists Ryan Mathews and Watts Wacker

What's Your Story? is a beautiful children's book set against the backdrop of the First Settlement of Australia. It describes the friendship of a little orphan boy from England, Leonard, and the friendship he strikes with a little Aboriginal girl called Milba. Leonard and Milba are mesmerised by the peculiarity of each others' worlds, and it is with this, the story develops.

The award-winning author “provides mentoring and practical and technical advice in this handy how-to book . . . as useful to teachers as to young writers” (School Library Journal, starred review). Storytelling is a universal experience. From an early age, we begin to shape our own world by crafting tales. But learning to tell—and write—a good story isn’t easy. It takes dedication and practice, just like for a musician or an athlete, and it can be just as rewarding to accomplish as winning a game or mastering an instrument. It’s the kind of work that feeds our souls and makes us glad to be alive. In What’s Your Story?, Newbery Medal-winning author Marion Dane Bauer discusses how to write fiction from beginning to end, including creating a story plan, choosing the best idea, bringing characters to life, deciding on a point of view, creating realistic dialogue, keeping readers hooked, and revising and polishing the finished product. “Her last comment is telling: ‘Knowing your craft can help you tell a story. But only by taking risks can you make art.’ After many pages of provocative information and straightforward counsel, that sentence may be the one to launch youngsters to the challenge. The book speaks directly to young writers, but many adults (teachers, librarians, reviewers, editors, would-be writers) will also find this sensible dissection of the storytelling process invaluable.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “A pragmatic, organized approach to story writing . . . the exercises and thought processes introduced as groundwork come across as stimulating rather than tedious and may serve to hone analytical skills as well as inspire even the most reluctant writers to try their hand.”—Publishers Weekly

Everyone has a story to share. What's yours? In 2009, Brandon Doman, who has always been curious about the people with whom we share our world, sat at a local coffeehouse and decided to ask passersby a simple question: "What's your story?" Providing only paper and pens, Doman created an exploratory space that instantly intrigued people to share their stories anonymously. Now, more than 10,000 stories later, the Strangers Project has become a momentous movement, engaging strangers of all ages and backgrounds to reflect, rejoice, heal, and connect through words. Published here for the first time, What's Your Story? showcases a selection of two hundred stories from the Strangers Project. Equal parts heartbreaking and humorous, this moving compendium lays bare our universal truths, desires, and sufferings, and illustrates the emotional power of storytelling and our shared humanity. To complete this beautiful collage of stories, a blank page is included at the end for readers to add their own personal story. With more than fifty color photographs and illustrations

Do Books provide readers with the tools and inspiration to live a fulfilled and engaged life. Whether it's mastering a new skill, cultivating a positive mindset, or finding inspiration for a new project, these books dispense expert wisdom on subjects related to personal growth, business, and slow living. Written by the movers, shakers, and change makers who have participated in the DO Lectures in the United Kingdom and the United States, Do Books are packed with easy-to-follow exercises, bite-size tips, and striking visuals. Practical, useful, and encouraging, each book delivers trustworthy, empowering guidance so readers can succeed in whatever they choose to "do." Do Story teaches the art of telling powerful stories. The book includes short stories on a variety of subjects; taken together they demonstrate a range of effective narrative techniques. Vivid, enlightening, and brimming with practical tips, Do Story unlocks the secrets to becoming a captivating storyteller.

Whether you want to improve your impact in speeches, staff meetings, pitches, emails, PowerPoint presentations, or any other communication setting, this book provides a novel approach that teaches you how to go from simply sharing a thought to making a difference. --