Late Workshop: 3:30-5:30pm

Presenter: Jessica Blank, Story for Social Good and Doug Hattaway, Hattaway Communications

Description: Neuroscience is finally confirming what artists have understood for centuries: that our brains respond reliably and powerfully to certain story structures, and that this response has the power to change our minds and motivate prosocial action.

For those of us working for social good, this understanding contains incredible potential. It means that using narrative strategically to communicate about the work we do, and telling compelling stories to bring that work to life can inspire audiences in ways that no other form of communication can. It means that it’s possible to construct and choose stories that impart our message emotionally—that give the audience the immediate emotional experience of our mission—without once having to explain it to them.

Story is a technology for triggering empathic identification, and when we understand the mechanics of this process, we can begin to work with story to motivate and mobilize audiences-- including those who we might not ever expect to come on board. A facility with the craft of story is not the exclusive territory of filmmakers, playwrights and novelists. When we understand how story structure triggers empathy in the brain, we can use that process strategically: we can learn to tell stories that give the audience the immediate emotional experience of our mission—without once having to explain it to them.

You Will Learn:

1. How to craft a narrative framework to organize the key ideas about an organization or issue in a way that reflects the way people think. This language is used to frame conversations, content, and storytelling about the organization or issue, and is designed for maximum motivation.

2. Literacy in the neuroscience of story; how the structure of story triggers a response in our brains that is radically different from any other form of communication.

3. An understanding of the deep structure that underlies all impactful stories, from Hollywood blockbusters to world mythologies; Broadway theater to viral media; Emmy-winning TV to successful story-based campaigns.

4. An introduction to Strategic Story methodology: that shows you how to use understandings from neuroscience, entertainment and the arts to choose protagonists strategically and forge an empathic connection, taking your audiences on a journey that transforms, activates and enrolls.