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Denise Withers

dw@denisewithers.com

Viral videos teach a master class in storytelling

Viral videos teach a master class in storytelling

I often hear clients say that they don’t have any good stories to tell. They think their stories always have to be about spectacular things that happened. Or that they have to have a big budget for fancy videos and big screen presentations. The truth is that a great

How to make your #GivingTuesday stories pay off

How to make your #GivingTuesday stories pay off

McConnell Foundation - leadership story lab

McConnell Foundation - leadership story lab

As the McConnell Foundation prepared to enter a new era, with a new incoming CEO and strategy underway, they knew they needed to invest in their team, to improve their ability to tell their stories. Their goal was not just to strengthen the communication of their work to external audiences,

Dread networking? Knowing this one story can help.

Dread networking? Knowing this one story can help.

I used to work with a guy who chose to wrestle polar bears – literally – to avoid having to schmooze at a conference. As an introvert myself, I confess that I’ve spent more time than I’d like to admit pretending to be on my phone to avoid making small

The one thing you need to know about story

The one thing you need to know about story

There is one thing you need to understand about story. One thing that drives it and makes it work. You need to know this, before tackling the vagaries of archetypes and arch-enemies. Stories are packages of problems and solutions. — The telling of a story describes a quest to solve a

Stories – better than caffeine

Stories – better than caffeine

I spent a week in Calgary recently, facilitating the first part of an Appreciative Inquiry for faculty at a polytechnic to enhance teaching excellence. The AI method was quite new to some on the strategic team that hired me and they were uncertain about its effectiveness – so I was under

Sooke - climate action lab

Sooke - climate action lab

When it came time to develop a climate action plan, the team at the District of Sooke knew that engagement would be key to its success. They also knew they'd need to shift some deeply entrenched narratives in the community and culture. So they asked me to work