Storytelling for business (1 day)

Stories grab our attention and stay in the memory.

Stories make presentations easier for the speaker to prepare and easier for the listener to remember. If you can master stories you will master communication because all great leaders and teachers are great storytellers.

Who is this course for?

If you need to:

• engage and inspire an audience with a vision and a direction
• connect across a range of cultures and experiences
• embed a message that will stay with your listener long after you are gone

What will I learn?

Your audience may never remember your point, but they will always remember your story!

Whether you work in training, teaching, or selling, or, for that matter, any area requiring communication and persuasion, the ability to create a compelling image to underpin your argument is crucial to winning the sale or selling the message.

There is much, much more to being an engaging speaker than just good eye-contact and a clear voice!

The aim of the course is to help you broaden your range of communication skills and develop your confidence in your ability to deliver memorable and dynamic messages; to move you beyond being a good speaker to becoming a great communicator.

Learn to:

• share an inspiring vision of the future
• build and lead teams
• enliven training programmes
• create messages that stick
• motivate clients and colleagues to action
• devise imagery to make the complex and complicated seem simple
• or simply build better relations and connect with people

How this course will benefit me?

During the programme the students will be:

Learning to use 3 types of story:
(i) personal examples, anecdotes
(typically expressing a message of ‘I can relate to your circumstances’) creating stories that build personal rapport and team togetherness;
(ii) stories about ‘others’ or using well-known cultural examples to access collective wisdom (typically expressing the principle of ‘if they can – you can’) creating stories that inspire and motivate; and
(iii) universal stories (typically metaphorical) that capture a vision or collective aim.

learning to construct stories with a clear purpose, choosing between:
(i) simple personal or anecdotal stories that illustrate a general principle and
(ii) literal stories of struggle and success;
judging whether it is better to put yourself into the centre of the story, or to focus on others;
choosing between stories that point towards an ideal outcome and stories that warn against an undesired outcome

exploring a variety of possible of storytelling techniques
(such as: simple imagery; unexpected turns; unusual juxtapositions;
reporting actual dialogue; appealing to all senses; introducing characters);
creatively employing structure, rhythm and repetition to enhance impact;
using the main key message to bring into focus preceding elements of the narrative;
introducing relevant rhetorical devices to increase impact and help to embed key messages;
adapting popular stories to highlight a point;
exploring exaggeration, surprise and arresting imagery.

"Great metaphors, story telling and experience made it very pleasant, relevant and interesting. Great stuff."

Neil Shayle – Host Contract Management

"Great examples throughout training. Involved all. Would recommend to others."

Jackie Field – GSK

"Very enjoyable and well run course with a lot of content that can be applied at work and beyond"

Philippa Murphy (RSSB)

"Very informative and great anecdotes which illustrated points and provided visual markers."

Catherine Murray - Girl Guiding

"The most interesting training that I have ever taken part in! Experience + Wisdom + Perfect teaching approach."

Marta Panasiuk - Mintel

"The training was spot on. He really listened to us and customised his responses throughout."

Jo Spiteri - Porchlight

"Loved the creation of visual examples through the use of body and how relating the experience really helps demonstrate the message."

ACCA

"Very approachable and motivational. So much information, brilliantly delivered."

Penny McLachlan - Coutts

"Loads of great analogies and stories - very friendly and helpful."

Nik Byrne - Design Portfolio

"Very approachable and knowledgeable and good use of examples to simplify the material."

Steve Sutherland – Confirmit

"Very good rapport, attention to detail, individual support, positive atmosphere and encouragement - a great place for learning."

Carolyn Savage - Winter School Finder

"Very great example; how to express yourself, how to be engaging and how to match body language with what is said."

Gita Petrevica - Opal Transfer

Your tutor - Michael Ronayne

4x UK National Public Speaking champion

Apart from 20 years of coaching and supporting other speakers & trainers, Michael has developed and delivered certified Training the Trainer courses for over 15 years. He can demonstrate it; he can see what needs to be done and he can teach it.

More about our tutors