Welcome to the Story Rules Content Hub – the second best resource to learn all about storytelling techniques for work (after ‘Story Rules‘, my comprehensive book on the topic!).
In this Hub, Here’s where you get rich storytelling examples, analyses, viewpoints, interview nuggets, visuals, quotes, and much, much more. To find out how you can make the most of this resource, please watch this 12-minute video.
You can explore this (for now free!) resource in four ways:
I was in two minds about writing this story. It’s the story of my journey of revamping Story Rules’ brand identity. On one hand, I feel it’s worth sharing since it contains lessons that can be applied by anyone looking to build their personal/corporate brand. On the other hand, talking so much about myself in a post makes me squirm a lot. Some parts are decidedly ‘salesy’, and not the kind of stuff that would normally go in this story-letter. But eventually, I thought that the benefits outweigh the cons. Let me know if you think otherwise 🙂 Here goes. …
Today being the first Saturday of the month, it is time for my content recommendations – a book, a podcast, articles and videos. Let’s get started 1. Book a. ‘Content Trap’ by Bharat Anand How important is a product’s quality to its success? You’d say, its the most important thing! Customers would always buy a higher quality product over a lower one. Right? Wrong. It depends on the connections that the product leverages. Consider Apple. The Macbook in the late 80s and early 90s was clearly superior to any Windows machine. And yet it struggled. Here’s the author, Prof. Anand: ‘Imagine …
I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts lately – the quality of conversations is truly mind-blowing in some. And to think that it is all free… (Enjoy it while it lasts – subscription-only models may be coming soon). In this month’s edition, I review a podcast that shares some absolutely gobsmacking stories from previous disasters that have plagued humanity (literally) … and what we can learn from them. But the first recommendation is the book of the month – a fun and insightful read. 1. Book: a. ‘The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone’s Mind’ by Jonah Berger: In Thailand, …
If you could resurrect one person from the past to deal with the Covid-pandemic, who would it be? For me, there’s only one answer: Dr. Hans Rosling. Unfortunately, on 7-February, 2017, the world lost this gem of a man – who was incredibly talented, insanely driven and a superb storyteller to boot … But he left behind an unparalleled legacy. Probably the most enduring part of that legacy for me? Not his much loved TED videos (which are brilliant of course)… His most important legacy is a massively important, fascinating and superbly-readable book: Factfulness. (Hat tip to Meghna Pal for the recommendation. Incidentally, even after the …
Ravi is a storytelling coach and consultant. He is a Chartered Accountant… But wait, that’s not how a story begins. This is how it does: Once upon a time, a boy was bornTo a creative mom and a structured dadShy and socially awkward was his normWhen lost in books, he was most glad Comics, novels and thrillers he’d enjoyThen it was non-fiction, especially historyMovies and music were a source of joyLater he realised – all were forms of story Writing also made him keenTo express his thoughts in clear prosePerhaps in an alternate life he may have beenA history prof, …
I call myself a ‘Story Coach’. But (a) what is that really? and (b) how did I reach here? This (ultra-long, slightly indulgent) story is about my journey. I’m sure many of you have heard of the Japanese concept of Ikigai. Loosely translated as “a reason for being”, it’s a powerful framework to figure out your true purpose in life – that which will bring most happiness to you. This story is about the quest to find my Ikigai. Before we begin, a few disclaimers! – This piece was to be a quick recap of my career choices using the Ikigai …
“I’m really looking forward to the 2-hour business review presentation” Said no one, ever. Why do review meetings suck so bad? And why does it bother me so much? I’m a Storytelling coach. And in my workshops, I teach participants the techniques to convert detailed, complex data into simple, compelling stories. But ever so often, when I suggest a new way of presenting information to a participant, I face resistance. Here are two common examples: Me: Your slide is too complex. You should split your messages across more slides – have only one message per slide Participant: But I can’t …
Work-from-home (WFH) is great, innit? No energy-draining commutes, no time-sucking meetings, no pesky co-worker conversations, no random birthday celebrations… and more family time… what’s not to love? The dirty secret? For many of us, the office provides the necessary discipline to work. Actually work. And not fall prey to the three challenges of the home-office environment: a. Distractions: Getting sucked into the unending temptations of the online universe (“Just one more video, and I’ll get back to work”) and other distractions. b. Battling interruptions: Uniquely home interruptions such as the newspaper guy coming for his bill; the ironing guy for new clothes … and …
You don’t own your smartphone. Your smartphone owns you. We all know about our smartphone addiction problem. This magic-device has taken over our lives and just doesn’t let go. Howsoever useful it may be, the hours of attention it demands from us (and the consequent loss of productivity) is too high a price to pay. What can be done? Cal Newport has some answers in his recent book ‘Digital Minimalism‘. Think of the book as a de-addiction program that will help you slowly reclaim your life. My Journey My own journey over the past few months (which is still work-in-progress!) may offer …
t isn’t very often that the CEO of a $100 Bn fund (who’s been called “the most powerful person in Silicon Valley“), makes a public presentation, just a month after his biggest investment has suffered an embarrassing debacle. The stakes don’t get higher than this. What does the iconic Masayoshi Son do? Beat around the bush and ignore the core issues? Or come up with a detailed nuts-and-bolts plan to fix the issues? He does something in between. This post is my attempt at deconstructing the recent SoftBank earnings deck (released on 6-Nov-2019). Going past the initial shock… I got to know of …
