A week ago I had the pleasure of spending my Saturday morning watching David Whyte share his work with 150 of his fans in the stunning background of a 1700 music hall in Oxford. I have been following David’s work since I saw him at a company event for senior leaders at Salesforce. He was introduced to us as a Corporate poet, and for people who know his work, he is so much more than that. He writes poetry, prose and has a deep soothing voice that speaks directly to your soul. Above all, he is a master storyteller.
Storytelling is one of the most powerful forms of communication because it is profoundly human. For as long as the spoken word has been used, it was through storytelling that wisdom has been passed down from generation to generation. At its core, it is the art of conveying a message or idea that engages the audience and creates connection. It is also an opportunity to bring other people along into a journey of words that would inspire and motivate. And you might ask me, “But which story should I tell?” Yours. Your stories, and I say it in plural since we have been gathering them as we experience life. You will find them in the most mundane tasks like preparing your morning porridge or cleaning the house to more elaborate achievements such as composing an opera or closing a multi million deal.
And I am not talking about Instagram posts, bullet points and having ChatGPT do the work for you. My invitation is to find the time to pause, sit back and let the words come out. It can be pen to paper or typing away on a keyboard (I do both but my preference resides in the former). The whole idea is that you should speak your truth.
The way I do it is by sitting every morning at the same time with a notebook and a pen. Either I do nothing or write. This is the only rule. I even found a group of aspiring storytellers that do the same at London Writers’ Salon, it is worth checking it out. In one of his poems, David Whyte writes that ‘to be human is to be visible’, and there is no better way to do it by telling your stories. Start it now.
Storytelling
