Business of Story

Ken Kerry, co-founder of Script to Screen, a leading direct response agency, and author of the new book This Works Marketing: The Proven System Generating Billions in Sales for Brands and Every Size Business, shares how their approach to direct-response storytelling has generated over $6.5 billion in sales for products and services.   Become a Master Storyteller Grab your free copy of The 5 Stages...

Dr. Randy Olson, Ph. D. Evolutionary Biologist from Harvard and a graduate of the legendary USC film school, and I will explore how you can use the ABT in branding and your business communications. Plus, he'll share with you his view of Narrative Selection and how only the best communicators will survive.   Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelli...

Adam Goodman, the third-generation President & CEO of Goodmans Interior Structures in Phoenix, shows how a purpose-driven brand inspires your people, aligns your culture, informs your business strategy and enhances your sustainability.     Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterclass to kick off an 8-week Deliberate Practice Program. Lea...

Tania Katan, author of Creative Trespassing: How to Put the Spark and Joy Back into Your Work and Life , shares her journey on how to smuggle creativity into even the most soul-sucking workplaces to inspire productivity.   Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterclass to kick off an 8-week Deliberate Practice Program. Learn more and reser...

Maestro Roger Nierenberg, creator of The Music Paradigm and author of MAESTRO: A Surprising Story About Leading and Listening , reveals how he uses the powerful storytelling forces of a symphony orchestra to create more empathic and influential business leaders.   Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterclass to kick off an 8-week Deliber...

Mike Huber, Senior Director of Business Strategy and Education for Vertical Measures, explore how they teach SEO through a new storybook: The Customer Journey: How an Owned Audience can Transform Your Business   Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterclass to kick off an 8-week Deliberate Practice Program. Learn more and reserve your sea...

Neal Smoller is a holistic pharmacist who is fed up with our health care system – both the medical and natural products industries – and shares how he developed his brand story for his new venture, Woodstock Vitamins, to provide better products, better advice and better information without any BS. Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterc...

Dr. George Basile, Biophysicist and Professor in the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University, describes how you can use the fundamental organizational force of brand storytelling to reframe social challenges like climate change as strategic business opportunities.   Become a Master Storyteller Join Park Howell in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 for a Storytelling Masterclass to kick off an...

  As our attention spans grow shorter, most of us look for new ways to absorb stories. But it's challenging to make your story stand out amongst all the noise and distraction. On this week's show, welcome to the world of the virtually immersive novel where tech and the printed work take you on a Sci-Fi adventure. The creator, L.S. Larson, president of Axon, formerly Taser International, shares his...

You hold the power to create the life you want. But the world has become so chaotic and so full of noise it's difficult to distinguish your own authentic story from the story the world is telling you. Therefore, it is important to pause and take a journey back to awaken the aliveness that is sleeping within you through the power of a purpose-driven brand story. Eighteen years ago, Chad Gabriel sta...

  All businesses have stories. It doesn't matter if you own a small-scale business, a medium enterprise, or a large corporation – they all come together with a common denominator: a brand story worth telling. So how do you know when it's time to evolve your business and your brand story? With every company's evolution and growth, the brand story needs to evolve because you want your people to take...

We all tell ourselves stories. We all have collective, imagined realities. But these stories are critical because they can either make or break you. Therefore, it's also important to take a step back, re-evaluate, and re-write these internal stories to make sure they're in line with our personal and professional goals and our subconscious mind isn't tearing them down. "There is nothing either good...

How "woo woo" does it sound if I tell you we are all made of stardust? I guess it depends on the messenger. If you hear it from someone who has a doctorate in astrophysics and has mastered the study of the entire solar system, it might sound like a natural science phenomenon. The real question is: how do you make people actually care about the amazing findings science brings us? How do you create...

Two weeks ago, I bought a pair of black wingtip shoes from the Johnston and Murphy store at Scottsdale Fashion Square. I noticed a pair of blue dress shoes that I had bought in Chicago six months earlier were marked down by $40. I mentioned this in passing to the cashier. When she rang up my new pair, she knocked $40 off of them. I wasn't looking for a deal. But she was empowered to give me one. T...

The medium you choose determines the kind of message you will share to connect with your audience. And most of us use our analytical left brain approach to understand what drives our customers. But this only covers the behavioral side, and isn't encompassing the full picture of what customers want and need. Therefore, in this week's episode, discover a revolutionary way of understanding audiences...

The way we typically consume stories is how they are told — starting from the beginning to the finale. But it's important to realize that not all stories are linear. Therefore, on this week's show, we're exploring a non-linear approach to telling stories using a variety of media channels to scale the same story. But the concern is if we tell the same story from a non-linear approach framed with di...

One of the most contentious issues among our political leaders is climate change, and the Green New Deal is furthering the conversation and the divide. But many leaders of purpose-driven brands are finding new ways to frame sustainability as a tremendous business opportunity. So how do you use your brand storytelling to open minds, especially when attempting to bring polarized worlds together?   B...

Why is happiness elusive? Why can't it be as easy as knowing what makes you happy and doing exactly that? Think about it. Later, you'll come to realize your important role in resolving this dilemma. In the pursuit of elusive happiness, we can use stories to connect even the greatest divides. It is a privilege to have Jonathan Haidt on this week's Business of Story podcast. Jonathan is an American...

In 1995, a convict of a federal drug case was given a reduced sentence of probation. Why? The judge saw a video of him taking care of his wife who was very sick. The video showed how his wife's entire life depended on him. Most importantly, it showed who will be affected most by the judge's decision -- the sick and dying wife who didn't have anything to do with the crime. That alone influenced the...

Back in 2013, I was working with different executives for the Sustainability Leadership Program for Arizona State University. I was one of three speakers and after I was introduced, the executives' reaction was, "Oh, the soft skills guy!" Little did I know, there was already warfare between technical hard skills and communications soft skills. A recent report from the World Economic Forum revealed...

This week, we're doing something different from the past 179 episodes. It's my turn to be on the hot seat and my guest, Wanita Z-Fourie, will be the one asking the questions. In this show, we discuss how to use storytelling to grow your following. Wanita is an African Kiwi and a social media professional who founded The Online Business Academy and an annual Social Media Conference New Zealand, whe...

Have you ever been telling a story and your words failed you? And I don't mean that you didn't have a word for what you're thinking or feeling. Oh, no. You thought of the best word you could possibly think of. Still, it wasn't enough to express exactly what you wanted to communicate, or your audience wasn't understanding the message. Maybe you should have drawn it out. It turns out that doodling l...

Sometimes, what should be a source of pride, financial security, and wealth for the family becomes a source of heartache, dysfunction, and conflict. The want for power and control is what separates families. This is why it is essential to have leadership coaches who can teach the essence of storytelling in building a successful family business. Years ago, I was a football game watching my son, whe...

This episode holds a special spot in my heart because my father, Keith Clinton Howell, passed away recently. We recorded this episode three days after he was buried and I felt he was the one who led today's guest to the show. My guest is someone who went through severe losses –family members, a job she really loved - and came out kicking. Surprisingly, hitting rock bottom and going through the low...

Many sales and business professionals ask themselves questions every day. "How do I earn the trust of my audience?" "How can I become an effective salesperson?" The answer? Ask your audience and customers questions. And after hearing their questions, offer a solution through your own story. Because you can earn trust through storytelling. When is a particular story applicable for a specific type o...