Tool: Storytelling

Title: Reinventing oneself through changing one’s story

Challenge Volunteering as a mentor for disadvantaged immigrant teenagers, I was working with Ali (not his  real name), a 21-years-old son of Turkish immigrants. At our ﬁrst meeting, I asked him to tell me  his story. Ali told me that he failed to graduate from general secondary school multiple times and  that subsequently, after he ﬁnally did, all higher education institutions and companies rejected his  applications. The NGO I was working for had eventually helped him to get into vocational school  where he was now to be trained to become a social worker. The classes were to be starting in a  few weeks ahead. The story Ali told me was one of frustration and shame: Always surrounded by  much younger fellow students, he saw himself as a failure, not just in school, but also in life  generally. Moreover, he feared to fail again at the new school and lacked the conﬁdence to ever  succeed alone without help from others. But talking to him I could see that Ali was in fact an  aroused and smart person with a great sense of humor. The major challenge I was thus facing was  to change Ali’s mind-set. More than to help him overcome his paralyzing frustration and to start his  studies more conﬁdently. Apart from just familiarizing him with some learning and organization  techniques, it seemed necessary to change his perspective and to keep him focused on his goals.  During our subsequent meetings, we went through what within the framework of this course  probably would be called the „What is?“- and the „What if?“-phase: We talked about problems that  existed in the past, weaknesses, strengths and the challenges lying ahead. We then moved on to  talking about his larger goals, ideas and the type of person he would ideally like to be. However,  looking at all the things we discussed, Ali still did not believe in the possibility of being a more  successful student and of taking even the smallest bit of proud in what he did. He had not yet  found a convincing way to positively connect his vita with the new opportunities lying ahead of him.

Selection Broadly speaking, storytelling as a tool is used by organizations and leaders to create connections  between beliefs, attitudes and values in order to not only solve a speciﬁc problem, but also to  create a sense of purpose and cause at a deeper level. It usually helps to unite different people  and departments behind a larger goal or vision. At the same time, a good story can help to reduce  complexity by making ideas more accessible and relatable. While there are different kinds of  stories, a good story usually involves a number of basic elements, including a main character, a  speciﬁc challenge faced in a particular situation and in the end presents a way ahead by coping  successfully with the challenge. After listening to Ali’s story and after I got to know him better during  the following meetings, I was sure that there was a much more positive version of his story.  Drawing on that idea of corporate storytelling at personal level, the priority for us thus became to  reinterpret his background and development from the very beginning, to match his past with his  future plans, and to work out a more motivating story in the end that he could tell himself and  others.

Application At ﬁrst, Ali was terriﬁed by the idea of writing a story as writing essays ranged among his most  hated activities in school. But it turned out he had two other talents: drawing and math. We thus  agreed to create a storyboard during the next sessions that would have the form of a cartoon-like  mathematical equation. In the ﬁrst session, we discussed the ﬁrst sequence in his life that seemed  relevant to him and we both took notes on the way. As he shared his story, I kept asking questions  and tried to highlight or expose positive aspects and successes. For instance, when he told me  that other kids in school laughed when he had to read out loud his improvised homework essays, I  countered that probably not many of them had worked 4-5 hours a school day in a newsstand and  in the beverage market of their fathers like he did, leaving them more time to care about their  essays. For the next session, Ali translated the notes into the ﬁrst cartoon. This ﬁrst cartoon, for  instance, showed a younger version of Ali balancing a pile of school books and running back and  forth between work and school, always losing one book on the way. We repeated this pattern for  ﬁve more sessions until we reached the present point in time, connecting the individual cartoons

with a huge plus sign. I then asked Ali to think about how his upcoming studies and what his job  thereafter would ideally look like and to draw the ﬁnal cartoon for another session. I also asked if it  was ok if I brought a good friend of mine to our next session who is by chance in town. In that next  session, I presented Ali to my friend as a clever person who has an exceptional story to tell. I then  asked Ali to show the cartoon he made and to tell his story. At ﬁrst, I could see how he initially  trembled with excitement but step by step he guided us through his cartoon getting more and more  conﬁdent. The story he told was totally different from the one I had heard during our ﬁrst meeting.  In short, it was a story of someone who had to work hard in addition to school, who had failed  several times to graduate but who also ﬁnally had found out who could help him out. Showing the  last cartoon, Ali explained that his dream was to ﬁnish higher education as the ﬁrst member of his  family and to get a job as a social worker where he could help other kids that fell behind in school.  My friend was impressed and asked him if he was excited to start classes next week. The answer  was a yes.

Insight When working with Ali, I did not know storytelling as a tool. It was during this course that I thought  that we actually used storytelling back then, even if unconsciously. The tool allowed us to attach a  different meaning to Ali’s past and to connect it with a larger purpose to the opportunities of his  imminent studies. There are three key learnings for me when I link this practical experience with  the now acquired theoretical knowledge about storytelling and Design Thinking more broadly: First,  storytelling is a very powerful tool also for individuals to change their perspective on themselves  and on their development. Second, storytelling facilitates collaboration: it is a very intuitive tool that  is fun to work with in pairs or small groups even if tough and emotional topics are at stake. And  third, storytelling is a highly ﬂexible tool can easily be combined both with other DT tools such as  visualization (e.g. cartoons) and with the individual strengths and capabilities of the people  applying the tool (e.g. drawing talent). This makes not only the outcome of the tool more  accessible, but also the tool itself. At a broader level, Design Thinking for me seems to be a  structured and easily applicable tool not only for complex organizations. It can also be useful for  individuals that cope with complex decisions or that want to clarify confusing situations in everyday  life.

Approach Storytelling helped Ali to identify the cause and purpose of the challenge lying ahead of him. It also  helped him to ﬁnd some meaning in the failures of the past. The power of storytelling in this  speciﬁc case was that changing the story was much more than or not at all window dressing.  Instead, this approach helped to change the perspective for one moment and to construct a  different, more compelling story – a story one likes to tell about oneself. I think that in this sense,  storytelling can be of use for many people and people working in organizations that sometimes  wonder: what am I/are we doing here and why? The idea of telling one’s own story now or at a  later point in time may help individuals to take better decisions in life and business by making these  decisions and their consequences more accessible and relatable. In a both private and business  context, storytelling may eventually push people to dare embarking on unconventional paths – for  the sake of innovation and for the sake of a good story to tell.


Tool : Storytelling Title : Reinventing oneself through changing one ’s story Challenge Volunteering as a mentor for disadvantaged immigrant teenagers , I was working with Ali ( not his real name ) , a 21 - years - old son of Turkish immigrants . At our ﬁrst meeting , I asked him to tell me his story . Ali told me that he failed to graduate from general secondary school multiple times and that subsequently , after he ﬁnally did , all higher education institutions and companies rejected his applications . The NGO I was working for had eventually helped him to get into vocational school where he was now to be trained to become a social worker . The classes were to be starting in a few weeks ahead . The story Ali told me was one of frustration and shame : Always surrounded by much younger fellow students , he saw himself as a failure , not just in school , but also in life generally . Moreover , he feared to fail again at the new school and lacked the conﬁdence to ever succeed alone without help from others . But talking to him I could see that Ali was in fact an aroused and smart person with a great sense of humor . The major challenge I was thus facing was to change Ali ’s mind - set . More than to help him overcome his paralyzing frustration and to start his studies more conﬁdently . Apart from just familiarizing him with some learning and organization techniques , it seemed necessary to change his perspective and to keep him focused on his goals . During our subsequent meetings , we went through what within the framework of this course probably would be called the „ What is?“- and the „ What if?“-phase : We talked about problems that existed in the past , weaknesses , strengths and the challenges lying ahead . We then moved on to talking about his larger goals , ideas and the type of person he would ideally like to be . However , looking at all the things we discussed , Ali still did not believe in the possibility of being a more successful student and of taking even the smallest bit of proud in what he did . He had not yet found a convincing way to positively connect his vita with the new opportunities lying ahead of him . Selection Broadly speaking , storytelling as a tool is used by organizations and leaders to create connections between beliefs , attitudes and values in order to not only solve a speciﬁc problem , but also to create a sense of purpose and cause at a deeper level . It usually helps to unite different people and departments behind a larger goal or vision . At the same time , a good story can help to reduce complexity by making ideas more accessible and relatable . While there are different kinds of stories , a good story usually involves a number of basic elements , including a main character , a speciﬁc challenge faced in a particular situation and in the end presents a way ahead by coping successfully with the challenge . After listening to Ali ’s story and after I got to know him better during the following meetings , I was sure that there was a much more positive version of his story . Drawing on that idea of corporate storytelling at personal level , the priority for us thus became to reinterpret his background and development from the very beginning , to match his past with his future plans , and to work out a more motivating story in the end that he could tell himself and others . Application At ﬁrst , Ali was terriﬁed by the idea of writing a story as writing essays ranged among his most hated activities in school . But it turned out he had two other talents : drawing and math . We thus agreed to create a storyboard during the next sessions that would have the form of a cartoon - like mathematical equation . In the ﬁrst session , we discussed the ﬁrst sequence in his life that seemed relevant to him and we both took notes on the way . As he shared his story , I kept asking questions and tried to highlight or expose positive aspects and successes . For instance , when he told me that other kids in school laughed when he had to read out loud his improvised homework essays , I countered that probably not many of them had worked 4 - 5 hours a school day in a newsstand and in the beverage market of their fathers like he did , leaving them more time to care about their essays . For the next session , Ali translated the notes into the ﬁrst cartoon . This ﬁrst cartoon , for instance , showed a younger version of Ali balancing a pile of school books and running back and forth between work and school , always losing one book on the way . We repeated this pattern for ﬁve more sessions until we reached the present point in time , connecting the individual cartoons with a huge plus sign . I then asked Ali to think about how his upcoming studies and what his job thereafter would ideally look like and to draw the ﬁnal cartoon for another session . I also asked if it was ok if I brought a good friend of mine to our next session who is by chance in town . In that next session , I presented Ali to my friend as a clever person who has an exceptional story to tell . I then asked Ali to show the cartoon he made and to tell his story . At ﬁrst , I could see how he initially trembled with excitement but step by step he guided us through his cartoon getting more and more conﬁdent . The story he told was totally different from the one I had heard during our ﬁrst meeting . In short , it was a story of someone who had to work hard in addition to school , who had failed several times to graduate but who also ﬁnally had found out who could help him out . Showing the last cartoon , Ali explained that his dream was to ﬁnish higher education as the ﬁrst member of his family and to get a job as a social worker where he could help other kids that fell behind in school . My friend was impressed and asked him if he was excited to start classes next week . The answer was a yes . Insight When working with Ali , I did not know storytelling as a tool . It was during this course that I thought that we actually used storytelling back then , even if unconsciously . The tool allowed us to attach a different meaning to Ali ’s past and to connect it with a larger purpose to the opportunities of his imminent studies . There are three key learnings for me when I link this practical experience with the now acquired theoretical knowledge about storytelling and Design Thinking more broadly : First , storytelling is a very powerful tool also for individuals to change their perspective on themselves and on their development . Second , storytelling facilitates collaboration : it is a very intuitive tool that is fun to work with in pairs or small groups even if tough and emotional topics are at stake . And third , storytelling is a highly ﬂexible tool can easily be combined both with other DT tools such as visualization ( e.g. cartoons ) and with the individual strengths and capabilities of the people applying the tool ( e.g. drawing talent ) . This makes not only the outcome of the tool more accessible , but also the tool itself . At a broader level , Design Thinking for me seems to be a structured and easily applicable tool not only for complex organizations . It can also be useful for individuals that cope with complex decisions or that want to clarify confusing situations in everyday life . Approach Storytelling helped Ali to identify the cause and purpose of the challenge lying ahead of him . It also helped him to ﬁnd some meaning in the failures of the past . The power of storytelling in this speciﬁc case was that changing the story was much more than or not at all window dressing . Instead , this approach helped to change the perspective for one moment and to construct a different , more compelling story – a story one likes to tell about oneself . I think that in this sense , storytelling can be of use for many people and people working in organizations that sometimes wonder : what am I / are we doing here and why ? The idea of telling one ’s own story now or at a later point in time may help individuals to take better decisions in life and business by making these decisions and their consequences more accessible and relatable . In a both private and business context , storytelling may eventually push people to dare embarking on unconventional paths – for the sake of innovation and for the sake of a good story to tell .