Storytelling is the like the old wrench that you find in your Dad’s toolbox. It is literally the oldest, most natural tool that we have access to as people to create connections, build trust, unlock passion, and impact each other’s lives.

But having the tool doesn’t mean that we necessarily know how to use it. Telling a story, is a skill we all have to play with and sharpen and make our own. But how do we even begin to do that? How can we grab people’s attention; make them laugh, cry, scream, smile; make them feel something? How do we make sure our story doesn’t fall flat?

+Christopher Pearsall , Positive Engagement Mentor and divorce lawyer, believes in empowering people through positivity and reaching people on a global scale by telling stories on social media. He is an amazing example of how positive engagement, being a great storyteller, and his signature humor is the fuel for building communities online.

In this episode of #TheStorytellerCircle, we’ll be talking about:

•  What makes a good story and storyteller
• Chris’ story of using stories for G+ success
• The differences between stories on camera and those in written posts and books
• Translating a story from visual to a written post
• AND some tips on writing a captivating story

More About Our Guest:
Christopher Pearsall is a Positive Engagement Mentor and divorce lawyer who says he has lived through literally thousands of stories. Christopher started out as a seminarian studying to be a Roman Catholic Priest until a story he recently shared in his posts changed the course of his life. He finished college and obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire. Shortly thereafter he became a live-in adolescent counselor for boys forgotten by the juvenile system in Rhode Island. While a counselor he fell became interested in paralegal studies. He got his Certificate of Studies in Civil Litigation and entered a 13 year careeer as a litigation paralegal. His paralegal career led Christopher to obtain his Juris Doctor from the Roger Williams University School of Law.

He has been a family law litigator in Rhode Island for the past 16 years. As a lawyer Christopher has published more than 600 articles online for his law practice including several hundred stories to pull people into the reality of what could happen in their lives with practical examples.

Yet as Christopher says, he wanted to make more of a difference in the world, so he decided to migrate from litigation to motivation.

Christopher is always looking for the positive in himself and in others. His goal is to empower people on a large scale. Social media provides the tool to reach people globally. He plans to start his own hangout dealing with the concept of “Positive Engagement.”
More About Dana Rivera:

Disney & Pixar freak, child of the 90s, vintage camera collector, and world traveler. Dana is a Video Editor & Video Vision Mentor at Dana Rivera Films. Before she started working with online women entrepreneurs crafting their video visions, she was a documentary filmmaker, creating online short films for nonprofits and corporations. She was on the front lines of crafting strategies for how video aligned with their core messages and principles, filming interviews and events, editing their content into meaningful finished videos and finally implementing plans for getting them in front of the right people. The results: Rapid growth of their youtube channel, increased awareness of their cause and mission in the community and jumps in reaching their fundraising goals.

But she had that big student debt number floating over her head, so she grew her business on the side to pay it down. And she fell in love with helping women conquer video.

She believes that Every person’s story matters. No matter how seemingly small or big, they all have an impact and deserve to be recorded.

Connect with Dana:

The Storyteller Circle FB Group
http://www.danariverafilms.com/thestorytellercircle

www.danariverafilms.com

It’s new, it’s cool, and trendy. Woohoo #socialmedia , let’s just blast our followers with link like crazy and watch the clients and money roll in…

or maybe not… Social media can’t be used as purely a distribution channel. It’s a an engaging two-way communication where #brands   and their audiences can co-author amazing #stories   and experiences. 
Stories are creative, provoke emotional connections, and inspire action. You might have your brand story but are you opening up the space for authentic connection? Are you really seeing the whole picture of how you are telling your story? And can you break that big picture down into digestible bites?

Whitney Ryan , founder of Whitney Ryan Social Marketing, believes in “building authentic and genuine #connections   with your customers through social marketing”. When we take a step back from our message and invite our audience to connect and engage with us, we can grow #communities   that are highly invested in our brands.
In this episode of #thestorytellercircle   , my guest Whitney Ryan will be sharing:

– how to boil down your story/moments into social media posts and under those character limits.
– how to use two-way communication to connect and engage
– what kinds of stories are great to tell through social media so your audience knows that you “get them”
– why you should be using a content calendar

Connect with Whitney: http://www.whitneyryan.com/

Download Whitney’s free gift:http://www.whitneyryan.com/contentcalendar

The links we talk about: 
Facebook lists: http://www.whitneyryan.com/2014/09/12/how-to-create-a-facebook-list/
and Twitter lists: http://www.whitneyryan.com/2014/07/24/how-to-use-twitter-lists/

More About +Whitney Ryan :

Whitney Ryan is a copy and content creator obsessed with helping small businesses build genuine relationships with their customers. A lifelong fan of brands who treat their customers right, she helps entrepreneurs effectively connect, compel, and convert their audiences using authentic copy and captivating social media. Last year, she turned down a job at a powerhouse social media agency because working with big businesses and Fortune 500s just didn’t sound as satisfying as helping the mom and pop’s down the street. When she’s not writing or creating content, Whitney’s either trying out new vegetarian recipes, playing with her dog, or fantasizing about her next travel adventure.
More About +Dana Rivera   :

Disney & Pixar freak, child of the 90s, vintage camera collector, and world traveler. Dana is a Video Editor & Video Vision Mentor at +Dana Rivera Films  . Before she started working with online women entrepreneurs crafting their video visions, she was a documentary filmmaker, creating online short films for nonprofits and corporations. She was on the front lines of crafting strategies for how video aligned with their core messages and principles, filming interviews and events, editing their content into meaningful finished videos and finally implementing plans for getting them in front of the right people. The results: Rapid growth of their youtube channel, increased awareness of their cause and mission in the community and jumps in reaching their fundraising goals.

But she had that big student debt number floating over her head, so she grew her business on the side to pay it down. And she fell in love with helping women conquer video.

She believes that Every person’s story matters. No matter how seemingly small or big, they all have an impact and deserve to be recorded. 

Connect with Dana: www.danariverafilms.com

Looking for a specific topic?

5:47 how to boil down your story/moments into social media posts and under those character limits.

11:28 how to use two-way communication to connect and engage

16:28 why you should be using a content calendar and Whitney’s gift:http://www.whitneyryan.com/contentcalendar

25:39 Promoting yourself and mixing content

“By understanding the story that we want to tell visually, we can use that to guide design choices of color, whitespace, typography, texture, proportion and hierarchy to powerfully communicate part of story without words.” – Webstandardsherpa.com

Stories are not just crafted through words, but also through visuals: video, photos, graphics, and design. The questions that need to be answered to create a Design (web, ebooks, graphics, branding) is so similar to those needed to create a story. 

– Who is the audience?
– What are your goals?
– What’s the flow?
– How do all of the pieces fit to tell the whole story?

+Sarah Hart, branding expert and web designer, believes in making connections over conversions and making a difference over dollars. She strives to build brands and designs that bring heart and soul into the world. And she does this by telling great stories.

 
In this episode of #TheStorytellerCircle , Sarah will share:

• her story
• how to put your whole self & story into your design
• how to create an emotional connection with your community
• the elements of the heroine journey
• tips for translating your story into your website

  Uncover your brand legend with Sarah’s quiz:http://www.sarahhart.ca/blog/quiz/

 
More About Our Guest:

Visual branding expert & web designer at Sarahhart.ca, Sarah Hart, founder of Sarahhart.ca, is a web designer who helps lifestyle brands become absolute legends online. When she’s not design’n up a storm Sarah loves getting lost in the woods with her camera or relaxing with a cup of tea and a book on mythology. Are you totally website stuck? Take her Branding Quiz to reveal your brand style & get your free brand book at sarahhart.ca/quiz.

More About Dana Rivera:

Disney & Pixar freak, child of the 90s, vintage camera collector, and world traveler. Dana is a Video Editor & Video Vision Mentor at Dana Rivera Films. Before she started working with online women entrepreneurs crafting their video visions, she was a documentary filmmaker, creating online short films for nonprofits and corporations. She was on the front lines of crafting strategies for how video aligned with their core messages and principles, filming interviews and events, editing their content into meaningful finished videos and finally implementing plans for getting them in front of the right people. The results: Rapid growth of their youtube channel, increased awareness of their cause and mission in the community and jumps in reaching their fundraising goals.

But she had that big student debt number floating over her head, so she grew her business on the side to pay it down. And she fell in love with helping women conquer video.

She believes that Every person’s story matters. No matter how seemingly small or big, they all have an impact and deserve to be recorded. 

Connect with Dana: 

The Storyteller Circle FB Group
http://www.danariverafilms.com/thestorytellercircle

www.danariverafilms.com

Please tell me a “boring” story! In the midst of the online powerhouse solopreneurs with inspiring stories of failure and how they overcame their obstacles, how do you tell your story if it doesn’t seem so grand, intense, or full of hardships?

What if your story just seems boring? 

The great news is that what you may think is “boring” or too common is exactly what others will connect with. That time you stayed up all night trying to finish a project, only to realize you never hit the save button or when you and your friends piled into one car for a road trip to the beach. 

Finding your story is all about looking within yourself and rediscovering your creative confidence. Telling your story involves pushing past the “fear of the messy unknown, fear of being judged, fear of the first step, and fear of losing control.”

 
+Pamela Ziemann  , Creativity and Confidence Catalyst, helps solopreneurs develop confidence and creativity from the inside out – and then boldly express their unique message to the world, so they can have the impact (and success) they desire.

 
In this episode of The Storyteller Circle, Pamela Ziemann will be sharing:

– her personal story of finding her voice and message
– why you and your story should dare to be boring
– the power of finding your story and your voice from inside yourself and in everyday moments
– how to ground yourself so that you can find your inner power, voice, and story

More About Our Guest: 

Pamela Ziemann, Creativity and Confidence Catalyst, helps solopreneurs develop confidence and creativity from the inside out – and then boldly express their unique message to the world, so they can have the impact (and success) they desire.

She rarely spoke as a child and was dubbed the girl who speaks with her eyebrows. She observed life around her and tried to make sense of it. One day in her early 20s she put what she could in her little Toyota truck and moved 1600 miles from my home.  She wanted what these authors wrote about… complete freedom. So, in her 30s, she left her appraisal life behind to travel throughout Asia and Europe. Every page of her passport was stamped, but something was still missing. 

Her life-changing moment came in the frozen food aisle at the grocery store. You’ve seen those brightly colored packages of frozen meals in a box? she bought them for years and believed the marketing health claims. One day when she was about to toss a ‘Healthy Choice’ meal into her cart, she realized that these profit-driven corporations didn’t care about her at all. They cared about their bottom line. She was determined to stop relying on others and get back in touch with her own creative genius. 

It took her years to get up the nerve to speak to groups. But one day, at a National Speaker’s Convention, she learned a different way. The facilitator told them that they each had a minute to speak or not speak. She decided ahead of time that when it was her turn she would simply be silent and enjoy the connection with others. About 20 seconds into her minute, she intuitively felt like saying something to the woman across from her. Words emerged from her heart, not her head.  People listened and she felt happy. 

It was like taking off heavy armour and feeling surprisingly more powerful without it. It expanded to other areas of my life. she started wearing organic clothes because they felt better on my skin. I switched from a diet that benefited the large, industrial food systems to one made her feel light, flexible and energized. she spoke my truth. She understood what she had read so many decades before in M. Scott Peck’s book The Road Less Travelled.  Transcend traditional culture. These were no longer just words on a page. It was a way of life. Now she’s excited to help other entrepreneurs find that same freedom, because this kind of lifestyle has opened up SO many beautiful opportunities in her life.

_Connect with Pamela: http://pamelaziemann.com/ _

 
More About Dana Rivera:

Disney & Pixar freak, child of the 90s, vintage camera collector, and world traveler. Dana is a Video Editor & Video Vision Mentor at Dana Rivera Films. Before she started working with online women entrepreneurs crafting their video visions, she was a documentary filmmaker, creating online short films for nonprofits and corporations. She was on the front lines of crafting strategies for how video aligned with their core messages and principles, filming interviews and events, editing their content into meaningful finished videos and finally implementing plans for getting them in front of the right people. The results: Rapid growth of their youtube channel, increased awareness of their cause and mission in the community and jumps in reaching their fundraising goals.

But she had that big student debt number floating over her head, so she grew her business on the side to pay it down. And she fell in love with helping women conquer video.

She believes that Every person’s story matters. No matter how seemingly small or big, they all have an impact and deserve to be recorded. 

Connect with Dana: 

The Storyteller Circle FB Group
http://www.danariverafilms.com/thestorytellercircle

www.danariverafilms.com