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If the "almost right word" worked,

Mark Twain wouldn't be famous... 

Storytelling, Narrative and Message Development

Words are weapons. Deploy them with care. 

What You Say  

On every stage, with every audience. What you say matters. The stories you tell matter. 

You have multiple stages and audiences; for your audience, it is always a big event when the leader speaks.

The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter. ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning. Mark Twain

Whether you speak with internal audiences (new hires, shareholders, the Board, the SLT, the entire team or your immediate team) or external audiences (existing or potential clients, the media, analysts, local or national government or other stakeholders) - whoever they are, your audience listens and reacts to every word you say.

Whether in 1-2-1 meetings, in a media interview, at your AGM, in an All Hands or Town Hall meeting, or before a Select Committee - on whatever stage you speak, your audience listens and reacts to every word you say.

Words can inspire, encourage, reassure, build, create, relieve pain or console. They can also hurt, damage and destroy. 

Words are not neutral. They should have a "handle with care" warning.

Your personal stock price and brand are as sensitive as the stock market. Your words, message, narrative, and stories have an impact and a big ripple... on your career and the organisation's future. Everyone forms an opinion, a story, about every person and organisation they encounter - at whatever level. This happens whether you like it or not.

You should shape those opinions and tell your side of the story. Fill any vacuum with your story, or someone might fill it with a story you don't like. 

Your Words Ripple 

Over 60 million people have watched Simon Sinek’s 2009 Puget Sound TEDx about knowing your WHY. So far. Hundreds of thousands of leaders have grown and focused on their organisations by listening to and applying his message. That’s quite a ripple from one speech in a small room with a flip chart and a tiny audience.

What are you saying and what impact are your words having?

Your brand is what people say about you when you're not in the room. Jeff Bezos

Imagine the impact and ripple if you could improve just one of the main line items in your P&L by 2%. What would that do to the profits of your company and your career? You have the power; you are the CEO. With the power of storytelling, you can pull the levers on all your line items. 

What Is a Storytelling Coach?

What You Say: The Content. Some call this message or narrative development.

Hemingway said you don’t need big words for big ideas, and he was right. Our life-changing speeches have beautifully simple, small words - feed, hold, kiss, touch, marry, love me. In business, we ask people to recruit, promote, and develop me - or even don’t sack me. 

But how do you find the right words and communicate with clarity? A storytelling coach helps you craft clear and compelling content which is vivid, memorable and retellable. A storytelling coach helps you turn ideas into ripples that resonate with people, move them, and change their behaviour. openai-domain-verification=dv-loWX4PZ9VYl4Es9krMBdju01

prime minister

I help people with two things. One is what they say. And the second thing is how they say it.

In 2003, over ten intense and gruelling 14-hour days, I meticulously refined and streamlined the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka's revolutionary United Nations peace speech. This task is typically a high-pressure endeavour, often neglected by the speaker until the eleventh hour and delegated to the speechwriter, along with the stress.

Like Obama and Clinton who both worked alongside their speechwriters, the then Sri Lankan Prime Minister, now President Ranil Wickremesinghe, understood the power and potential of a speech but he also recognised the significance of effective speechwriting and speaker coaching. 

He granted me unprecedented access to his thoughts and meetings during our ten-day stint in New York. We hadn't met before, but this immersive experience in which I was in the room for most of his meetings enabled me to observe, soak up, and grasp his speaking style, mannerisms, preferred vocabulary, and unique voice.

We dedicated late nights in his Secret Service-protected corner suite, practising his speech after his relentless schedule of meetings, recognising its crucial role in the speech's success.

We were preparing for the speech in the United Nations Nations Plaza Hotel, and the speech was taking place in the U.N. But he wasn't addressing the U.N.; for this speech, the people in the room were not the priority; they were not our audience, the people of Sri Lanka was. His audience was the people on the other side of the red dots of the cameras. 

This Prime Minister had an ambitious vision for Sri Lanka, and our 10-day partnership allowed me to craft, rewrite, polish and finalise a speech and then help him deliver it in a way that resonated deeply. We ditched jargon. We used small words for his big ideas. 

The welcome he received when he returned to Sri Lanka was overwhelming. The mere 30-kilometre journey from Bandaranaike International Airport to his official residence in Colombo took over 8 hours due to the enthusiastic crowds of over 100,000 gathered to greet him.

His speech moved his nation; imagine what something similar could do for you, your organisation and your legacy.

How Can I work for You?

You are short on time - we can deal with that. In an ideal world, all your communication is proactive and scheduled, but life isn’t like that. Sometimes, you must react to opportunities or “situations” that need your intervention.

For proactive or scheduled events, like an AGM or mid-year or annual All Hands/Town Hall communication sessions, we can schedule in time on the weekend at your home or on Zoom - where and when it suits you.

When things happen and you have to react, a simple WhatsApp message is enough for me to scramble to work with you on whatever has come up in the business that warrants a statement or an intervention from the CEO.

Everything you say must be your words and voice and be in tune with your marketing and communications teams.

Speak to me in Confidence

This kind of coaching relationship is personal - it's essential that people who work together at this level on things this important understand and get on with each other and click, or “vibe” as the kids say; why don't you book a confidential 1-2-1 call with me (no assistants) and let's see if we get on, see if we speak the same language……

WhatsApp me personally now if you prefer - +447775504299