The world and its climate is going to hell in a handbasket. Yep…I get and accept the science…and that we’d better not mess around too much in slashing our carbon emissions (and also stop plundering the rest of our planet’s resources). However there is a vital missing message around the “I’m telling you something and … Continue reading The vital missing message from climate change action
Category Archives: Marketing
Words have power, and people have “an appetite for well-expressed wisdom, motivational or otherwise,” says Ward Farnsworth. He’s dean of the University of Texas School of Law, and author of Farnsworth’s Classical English Rhetoric. The book shows examples of rhetoric (the art of persuasion) from the famous such as Churchill, Lincoln and Dickens, and lesser … Continue reading The power of language
A good business story allows the viewer or reader to imagine themselves as part of the action. A great business story enables that person to be the hero(ine) in that story. Which means a Wellington bus-shelter billboard for Auckland University elevates itself into the realm of great. Make your future self proud Five simple words … Continue reading Wish I’d thought of it
“You’ve got to tell a story” is heard so often it’s almost a cliche. Such an exhortation is more often than not heavily directed at science and science policy storytelling. But no one ever tells you how. Well, here’s a (summarised) how – based on a ‘science of stories’ – written by Michael D Jones … Continue reading How to write a scientific narrative
Your first story must Ring true; unearth an aha. Use a metaphor.
We have seven words to propose an idea according to Andrew O’Keefe of Hardwired Humans. 7±2 words is about two seconds – which is our brain’s working memory with information says the Sydney based people-strategies- design author and consultant. Our human instinct when we propose an idea, delegate a task or make a request is … Continue reading Hardwired humans…first seven words
Fiction is wonderful. Not only does it allow us to imagine we’re in a different world, era and situation, it enables us to safely become aware of different ways of thinking. When we’re reading or watching fiction, we know it is a made up story – even if it might be based on something real … Continue reading Why the most powerful element in storytelling is the truth
We’re a self-interested species, and we’re driven by story. As much as we might care about others, it’s our own now and future which more concerns us. The lens with which we view any advertisement or offer is naturally biased towards what we see is in it for us. What might be non-interest today could … Continue reading Why you should make your story appealing, succinct and problem-solving
We all get so wrapped up in our own business we can lose objectivity, lose perspective of what we actually do. It’s the not being able to see the wood for the trees phenomenon. Having someone else with which to bounce around your idea of ‘business self’ is an invaluable resource. Preferably you need a … Continue reading The power of another person’s perspective
Adding words is easy. But more words don’t necessarily add to more clarity. As the Occam’s Razor principle implies, you should use as few words as possible to explain – and no more. More words = confusion. More words are likely to be filler fluff. More words = potential to lose your reader or viewer … Continue reading Anyone can add words, few can remove them