I’m working with a new client who is getting ready for a huge keynote speech. He tells me that he felt like his last speech completely fell flat and the audience felt disengaged. So I ask him:

“Did you use storytelling in any way in your last speech?”

“No, of course not,” he responds. In his view, story wasn’t appropriate for his last talk because it was very data heavy.

So I challenge him. “Since you are in the scientific community,” I say, “what if, as an experiment, you add a story to this upcoming Keynote to bring the data to life?” 

I give him some background about why and how story works. And in the end, he trusts me and delivers his Keynote to a huge standing ovation. To this day, he continues using story in his scientific presentations.

We might think we need to deliver data in a straightforward way. Yet our brains are wired to remember stories so much better than facts. There are studies that show people retain up to 70% of the information shared through story, as opposed to only 5-10% when it’s just presented as data.

My special guest today, Genein Letford, deals in data through her work in Brain-Centric Design and a curriculum rooted in neuroscience and cognitive psychology. And in this episode of the Storytelling School Podcast, you’ll hear about the connection between the brain and storytelling and narrative, as well as get answers to questions like:

How does your brain respond when you hear a story? What is intercultural creativity, and how does it tie into story? How does your cultural development and competency impact your creative thinking and agility in various aspects of life? And how can you use the arts to increase your ability to tell stories?

• How your creativity identity is driven through narrative and can influence others
• Why creative agility is necessary for everyone in a changing world
• How relatability helps your story reach a new level for your audience

Genein is a national thought leader and creator of the concept of Prismatic Leadership, Intercultural Creativity®, and NeuroSomatic Creativity®.  She is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of CAFFE Strategies, LLC which is a consulting, coaching, and training company that trains C-Suite executives and employees to create sustainable organizational equity and inclusion strategies based on neuroscience while unleashing their innovative thinking for themselves and in their businesses. Her 7 Gems of Intercultural Creativity is a leading framework that supports organizations and corporations in their diversity and inclusion development while developing critical cognitive tools for creative thinking. 

Genein holds degrees in psychology and educational development from UCLA and CSUN, is certified in Brain-Centric Design, and roots her curriculum in neuroscience and cognitive psychology. She believes creative thinking thrives best in an inclusive environment, and she is often called ‘America’s Creative Coach’ for her work in reigniting intercultural creativity within our workforce.