SOLD OUT!
Become a Captivating storyteller
Learn the skills of the world's best storytellers...
for business, public speaking, and personal success!
"Great storytellers capture our attention and change how we think, feel and behave."
TO LEARN ABOUT FUTURE CLASSES, CLICK HERE!
Who Else Wants to
Become a Captivating Storyteller?
What are the traits of master storytelling? And, how can we use those to become more creative, influential, inspiring and confident? The skills in this masterclass are drawn from the world's greatest speakers, hypnotists, movie makers, marketers, authors, and professional storytellers.
- If you have children, you can tell stories that will influence them the rest of their lives!
- The stories you tell in business -- and how you tell them -- can make or break how people view you and your abilities.
- With friends and family, you'll have more fun and enjoyment when you can keep them captivated.
- If you enjoy creative expression, stories are one of the most powerful forms. (Sadly, many people struggle with "writer's block" and the loss of their natural creativity.)
- If you speak in front of an audience, strong storytelling can win them to your side and keep them fascinated.
- If you want to connect on a deeper level with the people in your life, stories can help you do it.
- People may quickly forget what you tell them directly, but they'll remember your moving story for decades.
"Hitchhiking, freezing on the side of the road..."
When I was 17, I hitchhiked across the country. On the second day, I was waiting at the side of the road at midnight. I'd been waiting three hours. I was freezing, tired, lonely, hungry and without money. I said, "I can't turn back. I won't..."
(The trip was inspired by a true story I'd read 5 years before. Nobody told me to do it, I'd been inspired by storytelling...)
Soon, someone stopped and gave me a lift. I was able to travel thousands of miles because of the kindness of strangers. I met interesting people and had strange adventures -- all motivated by a story.
“You may tell a tale that takes up residence in someone's soul, becomes their blood and self and purpose. That tale will move them and drive them and who knows what they might do because of it, because of your words. That is your role, your gift.”
You're constantly telling stories in your life. Stories of your wins, losses, successes and failures. Stories of the people you meet. Knowing how to bring out the magic of storytelling can transform an everyday happening into a powerful lesson or memorable adventure.
I remember someone once saying that his test for himself was this: "Can I make my grocery list into an exciting story?"
The idea is that almost anyone can make a wild adventure into an entertaining story. It takes charisma and creativity to turn the everyday into something special. By understanding the skills of great storytelling, you can learn to do that.
Luckily, you can choose the content of your stories freely! You're not limited to a grocery list. You can choose stories that make it easier to have an impact.
In fact, by learning to free up your creativity, and understanding the elements of profound stories, you can create awesome stories on-the-fly. There is a moment of freedom you experience when you can trust your creativity.
“After nourishment, shelter and companionship, stories are the thing we need most in the world.”
What are the key skills of storytelling?
- How to start your story right! (Many are struck with self-doubt when starting a story. Others paint themselves into a corner they can't escape.)
- How to grab people's interest right from the start. (Fail to do this and you may as will shut up.)
- What words generate emotion. (We're more influenced by how we feel than what we think.)
- How to build suspense and make your audience want to know what comes next. (It's important to know the tricks to keep them engaged.)
- How to silence your inner critic so you can let out your inner voice. ("Writer's block" is really an overactive internal editor.)
- How to find the meaningful in the mundane. (Even your everyday occurrences can shift how we think about the world.)
- How to use every aspect of your communication -- your voice, gestures, eye contact and words -- to captivate. (An amazing story can bore people to tears if you tell it wrong.)
- How to help people follow you and remember the important parts. (Because, unlike a book, they can't go back if they miss or don't understand something.)
- How to convey ideas clearly and simply. (Avoid being long-winded and losing your audience.)
- How to create an image in people's minds... so they feel like they are in the story themselves.
- How to attend to your audience and adapt to their needs. (There's no "right way" to tell a story -- you have to incorporate moment-to-moment feedback from your audience to keep interest strong.)
- How to keep going if you get stuck. (It's easier than many people think, you just need a few simple tools.)
- How to clarify the message you want to get across. (And, how to avoid sounding preachy or simple minded.)
- How to tie it all together and end your stories memorably. (People often best remember the last thing they hear, so you want your ending to be effective. This can make or break the impact you have.)
That's a lot, isn't it? And, that's just for starters! But, it can be fun and easy to learn those skills. You just need to break them down in a simple way. Then, you can practice step-by-step.
Why Learn to Improvise Stories?
Being a captivating storyteller is tricky enough. Why improvise them? Can you even do it?
First off, YES! You can do it. And, you can learn to do it consistently.
You'll have to put in some effort (nothing worthwhile is going to be handed to you.) But, the effort is fun and playful.
Second, why? There are many reasons.
- You'll find the skills of improvisation immensely useful in many, many situations. On the job, home with your kids, on dates, or entertaining friends.
- You'll gain an endless trust of your creative abilities.
- If someone you care about is upset, improvising the right story can be an effective way to cheer them up. A story can show them more possibilities.
- You'll have more fun and excitement.
- Practicing storytelling skills improvisationally allows you to use your skills with any kind of story -- spontaneous or planned.
“To hell with facts! We need stories!”
There's much more than that, of course. You have many reasons you're here, some are very personal to you. To keep it simple, here are three main benefits:
You can unleash incredible, child-like creativity.
Storytelling is a powerful skill that benefits your life.
You'll gain more confidence, influence and fun.
Are You Making These Storytelling Mistakes?
- Losing your audience. If you see eyes glazing over, you know you've done something wrong.
- Giving up before you start. You have to believe in yourself. You're guaranteed to fail if you don't try.
- Not building suspense. You've got to make them hungry to find out more!
- Not building interesting characters. Even in a short story, you can make people feel connected to the characters.
- An imbalance between action and painting the details. Too much action can be overwhelming, too much detail can bore people.
- Lack of knowledge. If you don't understand the elements of a good story, how can you tell one?
- Being a talking head. If you ignore your body, voice and eye contact, you'll have much less impact.
- Lack of connection with your audience. Great storytelling is really all about connecting with people.
- Ignoring the difference between written and oral storytelling. For example, in writing you can easily have many characters in a scene. That quickly confuses people in spoken stories.
- Getting hung up on what other people think. Yes, you want to focus on your audience and relate effectively with them. But, many people get into a cycle of worry about what people think.
“...What happens is of little significance compared with the stories we tell ourselves about what happens. Events matter little, only stories of events affect us.”
It's funny, isn't it? We all spent years in school. It was basically a full-time job. In all that time, how much time did you spend practicing memorable storytelling?
Probably not a lot. If anything, you may have analyzed great books and plays. Done some linear, logical thinking about them. But, how much did you actually tell stories?
If they had you write, they probably emphasized grammar and punctuation. How you wrote the words, not what you wrote.
A friend of mine took a writing class recently. She said the teacher didn't like what she wrote. She was starting to spend her time worrying about what her teacher and classmates would think. She was trying to figure out how to please them.
For the first time, she couldn't write!
The reason that happens is many teachers are quick to judge. They say there is a right and wrong way. My friend's teacher called her way "the wrong way."
I don't think that's useful.
Giving people grades and approval based on a teacher's opinion can destroy the creativity and self-expression we're seeking to encourage.
Think of how many classic books were banned. What if they're authors had attempted to fit what was acceptable?
“There is no greater power on this earth than story.”
What's needed is an approach that gives you a load of techniques, ideas and tools to express yourself in your own way -- to accomplish the objectives you set.
Think of it like painting: If you have all the different brushes, paints and little instruments available to you... and if you understand perspective, shading, and the different elements of painting... you then get to decide how you use them. You can create anything you want on that canvas, as long as you know the techniques to do it.
With stories, you learn the techniques: from characters, to setting, to action. You learn how to use your voice and body to compliment your words. You learn how to release your creativity. Then, you use it how you desire -- to your accomplish your purpose.
It's for you.
“Write to please yourself. When you write to please others you end up pleasing no one.”
Now, here are our goals:
- The ability to effortlessly create stories anytime, for the enjoyment of yourself and others.
- The skills to capture people's interest and arrest their attention for as long as you wish.
- The ability to adapt and create many different types of story. And, knowing what's suitable for what context. You'll do it differently at work than at home, with one audience versus another.
Announcing the Become a Captivating Storyteller Masterclass!
By request, I've created a day-long training designed to immerse you in the art of storytelling. It's an opportunity to really get at stories from all sides. To discover what you're capable of creating.
It's more than that. It's an opportunity to find out how creative you really are. To unleash a side of yourself you may not have fully let out for years. Decades.
How much great storytelling can you fit into one day?
Excellent question! (I've always admired your intelligence!)
Let me make an admission: there are limits to what we can accomplish in one day. Sure!
That's why I've added some bonus additions to help improve, increase and integrate your learning. You'll learn more about that in a minute.
Fortunately, you can fit a lot of learning into one day! You'll do all sorts of fun games and exercises. They'll help return you to your naturally creative state. Remember how as a child you were effortlessly creative? That's our goal.
You'll gain loads of practice. That's for sure.
You'll still want to practice more afterwards. You'll get the most from your experience that way. I'll give you tools and suggestions for how to do that.
By setting clear goals of exactly the skills you need, this course is designed to take your skills to the next level. You'll learn how to free your thinking, become a more dynamic communicator and generate an endless stream of stories from absolutely nothing.
In Seattle, on January 21st,
“Become a Captivating Storyteller!”
This is more than a one-day class...
I want this to be a life-changing experience for you . (I want any class you take with me to be life-changing:) So, I've structured things to be a little unique.
- You get the full one-day Masterclass. Near Greenlake, in Seattle, on January 21st. It goes from 10:00AM to 6:00PM
We'll quickly get you past any nagging insecurities and into a creative state of mind.
Then, we'll work through loads of useful skills -- and, this is vital: you'll practice those skills repeatedly. - You'll get phone coaching. Before and after the event, you'll do a number of exercises on the phone with me.
Students have said the class paid for itself after their very first coaching call. (That's before even coming to the class!)
You'll get recordings of these calls, so you can listen back if you wish.
First, these will help you to get ready for the training. So that you'll get more value from attending.
Afterwards, it will allow you to to retain the skills you've gained and get one-on-one feedback.
We'll have 2 phone coachings, both 45-minutes long. An hour and a half total. - We'll have a group dinner a week later. (Note: you'll pay for your own meal separately.) You'll have another chance to practice your skills. You'll do it in a relaxed, friendly setting.
This is to guarantee the benefits last through spaced reinforcement of your learning.
Plus, it helps create lasting connections with, wonderful like-minded people. - Plus, you'll get a 65-page, short-cut guidebook. Explaining the concepts and ideas from the training. Including bonus material we won't have time to cover in one full day.
What's my investment?
I dare you to find a better deal anywhere else! You won't find anything which:
- One-on-one coaching.
- Gives you personal before/after recordings to learn from and see your own progress.
- Includes a detailed, 65-page manual so you can explore and practice after the class.
- Gives you as much opportunity to connect with others.
This class is SOLD OUT!
CLICK HERE TO LEARN ABOUT FUTURE CLASSES!
This is a newly designed Storytelling Training!
Here's what students have said about our other training:
“I’m a voice actor so improv is an important skill to have. I hadn’t taken any improv in a while after a negative experience a few years back in which I worked with a director who did not offer the friendliest of environments.
Chad has created a fun group that feels safe to explore your creativity without fear of ‘failure.’ It’s okay to try new things. It’s okay to ‘fail,’ and you’ll have a good time doing so. He also offers great, real world insights into human nature.”
"Chad is a world of knowledge, and a very good facilitator and teacher. He is able to answer the most difficult questions with skill and understanding.
Who would believe that shy people, those who have trouble believing in themselves, could learn to laugh and play, think on their feet, feel confident, and communicate without feeling self conscious, in front of OTHER people who are doing the same. Chad makes that happen!!"
100% MONEY BACK GUARANTEE
You are fully protected by my 100% Satisfaction-Guarantee. I don't want anyone to pay for something that wasn't worth their money.
If you complete the class and don't feel it was worth more than you paid for it, you can have your money back. Really! Just let me know that weekend.
Might someone take advantage of this by asking for a refund even if they liked it? Sure. But, generally people are good and honest. I enjoy trusting people.
I ask a couple things of you in case you later want a refund:
First: Please be on time, do the exercises and try everything. If you're late and miss sections of the class, you won't get everything from your experience.
Second: if you have a complaint during the training, let me know so I can try to remedy the situation.
Third: please let me know that weekend if you want a refund. You can't call up 6 months later to tell me.
If for some reason you need to cancel your registration, you can cancel up until 48 hours before the class and get a credit for a future class, I'm limiting the class to 10 people, so if you cancel late, that prevents others from coming who wanted to.
Like I said, I have a philosophy: be a good person and others will be good back.
A blessing...
"I joined Chad's class 5 months ago when I found myself out of work, and it was a blessing to meet him! Chad has a natural way of putting people at ease and helping you work through moments with clarity and fun.
I joined his class to learn different communication strategies and I've learned so much more than that. Chad is a great teacher with great energy, and I highly recommend working with him!!"
Challenges your comfort zone...
“Chad creates a welcoming space where people can explore creative play. Students quickly challenge their own comfort zones by trusting their partners. Throughout the work, Chad also integrates ways in which the techniques brought together can apply in our daily lives.”
Still on the fence?
I remember dancing with a woman years ago. We had a wonderful time. She told me that she and a friend of hers had started dance lessons on the very same day 3 years before. They went to the same place and tried a beginners class..
I asked her, "Where's your friend?"
She said, "Oh, she quit after the first try. She said she'd do it later, when it was more convenient. She's never gotten around to it."
“Procrastination is the thief of time.”
If you really want to become a more effective storyteller, you'll need to take action.
No one can do it for you. You're in charge.
I look forward to seeing how you develop into a more exciting, effective, inspiring storyteller!
P.S.: You can sign up with the complete knowledge that if it's not worth several times what you pay for it, you can get 100% of your money back.