Stories Trainers Tell: 55 Ready-To-Use Stories to Make Training Stick [With CDROM]

Storytelling has been used to convey history and lessons for centuries. Before newspapers came on the scene, story tellers would travel from village to village telling stories to share the news of what was happening in other communities and the world at large...at least as large as it was back then. One could argue that storytelling has become almost a lost art as our communication mode has shifted more to content, facts, polices and procedures. In the corporate world, leaders and managers-and training professionals-have attempted to communicate without really reaching people "inside," where messages can resonate with a mental or emotional picture. It's that inner connection that has the potential of changing behavior and making a difference. To make that connection, communicators need to engage people's minds and hearts to help them "get" the message. So here's a book on the stories trainers tell. Big book, thick. Whew! That's a lot of fluffy, touchy-feely soft stuff! That first impression will disintegrate as you open this wonderful resource. Sure, there's a treasure chest of stories, mostly from experienced trainers and professional speakers who use them regularly to build the effectiveness of their work. If this book were merely a collection of all those stories, it would be a helpful reference...sort of a Chicken Soup for the Trainer's Bookshelf. Fortunately, the authors have a deeper understanding of what communicators need, so they created an incredible tool kit for trainers, speakers, executives, managers, coaches, parents-the list goes on.Each of the stories is presented with tips on how to use it, questions to enrich the telling, key point options, and follow-up activities. The stories-short, not long-are set apart in the text by the use of helpful shading. So, now we have more value than just a catalog of stories. But, wait! There's more. The book includes an explanation of different kinds of stories, when and how they can be used, with a cross-reference to the 55 stories. Want even more value? The stories are gathered into chapters that organize the resources for easier access: Appreciating Differences, Communications and Feedback, Customer Service, Influence and Motivation, Leadership, Living Our Values, Performance and Coaching, Problem Solving, Teamwork and Collaboration, and Training Fundamentals.Are you sensing why I'm enthusiastic about this book? We're not done! I've only told you about what's in the back of the book! "Stories Trainers Tell" begins with an invaluable section on the why and how of using stories to enhance and enrich communication. Page after page of tips and insight educates and inspires the reader, deepening understanding to raise the level of professionalism and effectiveness in communication. The CD-ROM? Pop this tool into your computer and enjoy an MP3 format delivery of audio dramatizations of the stories in the book. Readers can now learn as listeners also, and most of the recordings are authorized for re

I am a Director of Training for a fortune 500 company. Quarterly, I look for new resources that my 40 designers and trainers can use when developing and delivering material to our employees and agents. This book was the gem I've been looking for. Story telling is the most powerful thing a trainer can give their students - because the stories last in the mind forever when the technical details disappear. This book details the how, the what, the when, the where, and the why. Recently I bought a copy for each one of my staff - and the incredible results are already coming in!!! Thanks for my best new resource of the year!

You don't have to be a trainer or public speaker to benefit from this book - you can be anyone who uses (or would like to use) stories to create impact. This book not only contains a catalog of stories that you can use to illustrate a point (conveniently categorized into pre-defined topics), it also contains a recipe for crafting and telling your own stories. Want to know how to create that extra bit of suspense that makes a story engaging? Want to know how to create a surprise ending? Want to know what the basic structure of an effective story? Want an off-the-shelf story that you can read or recite to a group to make a point? If so, this book will serve you well.

As a trainer, I am always looking for ways to make classroom training interesting, relevant, and memorable. I've used-and watched other trainers use-role plays, case studies, demonstrations, videos, games, instrumentation, puzzles and, simulation. These are all effective training methods, but in my opinion, one method that frequently gets overlooked is story telling. In their book Stories Trainers Tell, Lori Silverman and Mary Wacker are out to change this. Their book provides everything a trainer needs-including the stories-to use story telling in the classroom.The book is organized into two major sections. The first section contains the "how-to" of storytelling. In Chapter 1, you will learn about seven types of stories that can be used in training. Chapter 2 describes how and where you can find stories. It also provides some useful tips for organizing your stories. Chapter 3 is dedicated to helping you write your own stories. It describes a story structure as well as a process for creating stories. Chapter 4 provides information about how to integrate stories into your training programs. You will learn how to select stories and when to use them. Most important, you will learn how to frame stories in the training so that participants will take away the intended learning. Chapter 5 provides numerous tips for story telling, including how to choose a voice, how to introduce the story, how to alter a story to fit the required situation, and how to become an effective story teller. Chapter 6 deals with the legal and ethical issues of story telling including copyrights, attribution, and verifying sources.If you feel you are a master of story telling, you can skip the first six chapters (Section 1) and dive directly into Section 2, which contains numerous stories-all catalogued and categorized for easy use.Teaching a workshop on diversity? Check out Chapter 7, which contains stories on appreciating differences. When I taught a recent Communications class, I found the perfect story in Chapter 8 to illustrate a point I was teaching. If you teach Customer Service workshops, you will find Chapter 9 useful. If you are teaching Leadership Skills, check out Chapters 10 through 15, which deal with issues such as influence, motivation, values and ethics, performance management, coaching, problem solving, team building, and collaboration.Finally, the book wouldn't be complete without a chapter just for us trainers. Chapter 16 includes stories that you can use when you are training trainers. I've already used Teaching a Dog to Whistle to explain the difference between teaching and learning.Lori and Mary have created a masterpiece. Their book has taken a place on my trainer's bookshelf next to Julius Eitington, Robert Mager, Ed Scannell, and Pfeiffer & Jones. No trainer should be without this valuable reference!

The authors of Stories Trainers Tell have done a marvelous job of bringing the vehicle of story telling into the training room.The beauty of the format of this book is that the story is not a stand alone piece, but rather skillfully integrated into a well crafted "recipe for successful delivery and high impact learning." Each story is accompanied by debrief questions, key point options,presentation tips, and follow-up activity. My career in training and development spans more than 20 years. During this time I have seen many training products and books that lack "sticking power." I believe this book provides the sustainability that learners and trainers are stiving to achieve.