Heron's Eye presented the interactive workshop -- "The Power of Words in Your Work: Writing Your Land Trust’s Success Story" -- at the 2012 PA Land Conservation Conference. We explored the key elements of organizational narrative and played a fun story development game called "Land Trust Alive." We're available to present directly to your organization on this topic.

1. Writing Your Land Trust’s
Success Story:
The Power of Words
in Your Work

2. Krista Gromalski
570-647-6407
krista@heronseye.com

3. Sandy Long
570-647-6406
sandy@heronseye.com

4. HeronsEye.com

5. Our Agenda
• Get to Know Each Other
• Find Your Story
• The Power of Story
• Break
• Land Trust Alive
• Share Your Story
• Questions

6. Organizational Narrative
“A thriving organization sees its mission
as an ever-emerging story with all the
necessary twists and turns.”
– David Fleming, "Narrative Leadership: Using the Power of Stories”

7. What is a Story?
• A narrative account of a real or imagined
event or events.
• A specific structure of narrative with a specific
style, set of characters, and sense of
completeness.
• Conveys wisdom, beliefs and values.
• Explains how things are, why they are, as well
as our role and purpose.
– National Storytelling Association

8. Find Your Story
•Origin
– Where have you been?
•Impact – Where are you now?
•Vision
– Where are you going?

9. In the beginning…
“An origin story takes you back to a
moment. An instant, when an organization
was born.”
- Joel ben Izzy, Story Consultant

10. You wanted something…
•Describe that “instant”
•Make it real
• Use details
• What did it feel like to be in that moment?

11. Your actions have impact…
What is your impact?

12. Your impact
moves you forward…
“Whatever started you in the beginning,
that „spark‟,
has to be connected to the vision.”
- Joel ben Izzy, Story Consultant

13. Types of Story
•The BIG STORY
– Used by a broad base of your organization - staff, board, volunteers,
members, etc.
– It gets everyone using the same language.
•The deta ils
– Coveys your smaller messages.
– Focuses on a specific program that runs for a set amount of time, an ad
campaign or fundraising campaign.

14. The Power of Story
•Irresistible
•Believable
•Unforgettable
– Greg Power
President and General Manager
Weber Shandwick

15. What’s in a Game?
• Business Processes = The way we
do things.
• Games = Experiencing processes
from within,
like a customer.

16. Land Trust Alive
Based on Product Pinocchio
Gamestorming: A Playbook for
Innovators, Rulebreakers,
and Changemakers

17. Describe Your Friend
• What am I like?
• What are my values?
• What is my community?
• What makes me different?
• What is my fight?

18. Suspend Your Disbelief
Drawings by Emma Kay Shaller
Draw a picture of your friend & givethat persona name.

19. What is Your Friend Like?
Illustration from Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers
•Call out adjectives • Be creative!
and phrases
that describe
your friend.
• Write your responses
around your picture. • Don’t self edit.

20. What are Your Friend’s Values?
Illustration from Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers
• What would your
friend say or do
in this situation?
• What does this
say about your
friend’s values?

21. Illustration from Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers
Hang Out with?
Who does Your Friend
Drawing by Joei Marie Shaller

22. What Makes
Your Friend Different?

23. What is Your Friend’s Fight?
• Motivation?
• What keeps him or her up at night?
• What does he or she do for people?
• What is he or she trying to prove?
• What obstacles are in his or her way?

24. Reflect
Then, introduce us to your friend.

25. Media Relations
• Be concise and precise
• Get to know your contacts
• Respond promptly
• Make your info easy to access
• Send thank you notes or emails
• Don’t avoid the difficult conversations

26. Stories&Social Media

27. Thank You!
Heron’s Eye
Communications
HeronsEye.com