Don't ask "What's for dinner?" questions!
A conversation with Mary-Alice Arthur, New Zealand's most successful storyteller
The Neuland training camp is a meeting place. Internationally active trainers and coaches come here – at the heart of active learning – to make a short stop on their travels and often give seminars in small groups. Mary-Alice Arthur did the same during her 2011 European tour.
Mary-Alice Arthur has been asking insightful questions for years, wherever she's called upon: she has mastered storytelling, the ancient art of narration, from the ground up. In 1992, the New Zealander first heard a storyteller who immediately moved many to tears – and spontaneously asked herself: "Can I do that too? Can I captivate people so much that they listen to me? Immerse themselves so deeply in my stories that these emotions become possible?"
We wanted to know more and asked about her first steps.
"I immersed myself in many books, spent hours in libraries. In doing so, I observed something very important: Every story has its turning point! An exciting opening, an emotionally significant initial situation, a likeable main character, suspense through goals and obstacles, a recognizable development (before-and-after effect), and a transferable conclusion – the moral of the story!"
Mary-Alice Arthur has recognized that stories often make it easier to anticipate difficult or distressing situations. She also sees storytelling as the key to successful leadership: "It seems to me that all successful managers use storytelling to help their employees visualize the future of the company!"
Her appeal to future storytellers: “Don’t ask ‘What’s for dinner’ questions! Only good questions get good answers! Look for ‘the story behind the numbers’, be curious, listen carefully!”
Mary-Alice Arthur applies this method internationally in education and knowledge management, using it in corporate communications to teach people how to highlight topics that require special attention. As an author, she developed the "Storytelling" learning map for Neuland partner "Die Kommunikationslotsen" (The Communication Pilots), thus enabling many clients to quickly access the topic. "Taking the time to truly understand the application of storytelling helps employees work faster and more effectively later on!"
Learn from the pros: Take a look at the learning maps!
The practical, bilingual learning map is a perfect tool for guiding the introduction to storytelling. From (re)inventing the right story to telling it in an engaging way and visualizing it concisely – the learning map shows users how to effectively integrate the method into their events.
Neuland already offers learning maps on the topics of Open Space Technology, World Café, Appreciative Inquiry and Visual Facilitating, Storytelling and Project Management.
Learning Map No. 5 – Storytelling
ISBN 978-3940315069
Bilingual concept D GB
Format 68 x 99 cm, folded to 9.7 x 24.7 cm
RRP €12.90 plus VAT.