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XPLANE
Storytelling for Change
Develop a compelling story that moves people to action.
Questions? Contact us at [email protected]
Facts inform, but stories move people.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to:
In today’s world of countless meetings and short attention spans, the ability to communicate change through compelling narratives isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s a leadership essential!
A well-told story turns passive listeners into active participants, motivating people to engage and adapt.
Stories are one of our most primal tools, they translate ideas from the page to hearts and minds by connecting abstract concepts to human experiences, simplifying ideas, and building understanding about what needs to change.
In this course, you will move from inundating your audience with facts and figures to telling a cohesive and compelling story that resonates with people and builds buy-in.
This isn’t just a course, it’s your first step toward transformation. During the course you will work through a series of storytelling challenges that unlock creative thinking and help you build a personalized change story to implement your next big change.
- Craft stories with purpose.
- Use storytelling to inspire and spark transformational change.
- Sharpen your narrative using sensory details and visuals to clarify meaning and breakdown complexity.
- Use stories to connect with your audience and tailor a message they can rally around.
- Leave with a personalized change story that helps people see themselves in the journey.
Change is smoother when you're not leading it alone. Bring a partner and save $200 each.
What Makes This Course Different?
Built for Collaboration
Learn from master storytellers and change practitioners who will help you practice key skills alongside other professionals working through similar change challenges.
Read-to-go Story
Toolkit
Access to a library of vibrant storytelling methods to use in your daily practice as well as lifetime access to the course portal and materials including digital boards and templates.
Real-World Applicability
Leave with a compelling story that you can implement right away. After the course, you will also have an opportunity to book a 30-minute call with a course instructor to review and evolve your story.
This course is for you if:
- You’re frustrated that your audience is getting lost in the information you’re presenting and missing key insights.
- You’re struggling to connect data points with a compelling narrative that moves people to action.
- You have a lot of information to present but very little time to get your audience to understand or care.
- You’re frustrated that your presentations aren’t landing and your audience isn’t taking the action you want.
The Learning Experience
This is not a lecture. It’s a collaborative, action-driven, cohort-based journey, featuring:
- Live and Asynchronous Sessions: To fit your busy schedule, expert storytelling practitioners share insights through on-demand video content, plus three hands-on live-instruction workshops to provide real-time guidance, collaboration, and practice opportunities.
- Small-Group Collaboration: In addition to the full-group activities and discussions, you’ll practice key skills and collaborate with a small cohort.
- Actionable Feedback and 1:1 Consultation: Gain immediate input on your storytelling approach—ensuring you leave with a compelling story that sticks. After the course, book a 30-minute call with a course instructor to dive deeper into your specific story.
Secure Your Spot
Don’t let your potential lose momentum. Lead the kind of change that energizes teams, earns trust, and drives lasting results.
Course Schedule
Before the Course
Prework
- Define your change initiative or scenario and collect data points to support your story
- (Optional) 30-minute orientation
Day 1
Story is change
- Understand the science of storytelling
- Define the goal of your story
- Assemble your data and prioritize supporting components
Understanding your audience
- Develop empathy and understanding for your audience
- Make sensory connections
Day 2
Jumpstart your story
- Explore engaging story hooks or starting points
- Unpack common elements of story: narrative arcs, metaphors, and frameworks
Land your story
- Set objectives or takeaways for your story
- Experiment with elements of story to push the audience towards action
- Draft your storyboard
Day 3
See the story better, visually
- See scalable stories in action
- Pull the story together visually
- Review the principles of presentation craft
Keep your listeners engaged
- Present your story
- Collect and provide feedback to iterate and refine
- Activate your story
After the Course
Schedule time with your instructor
Refine your story and book a 30-minute consultation on your specific storytelling challenge with course instructors. During this focused one-on-one time, you’ll gain more in-depth feedback to help you sharpen the effectiveness of your story and maximize its impact on your audience.
Ongoing Benefits
- Lifetime access to course portal and materials including MURAL template
- A library of storytelling methods to use in your daily practice
- Access to new tools, bonus content, and course updates as the course evolves
Your Instructors
Tim May | Creative Strategist
Tim has been telling visual stories his entire life. As a designer for XPLANE, Tim has inspired a cult following of doodlers, visual thinkers, storytellers, and facilitators from all walks of life. In his role as Creative Strategist, Tim contributes heavily on client work, brand, and thought leadership.
His larger-than-life facilitation style has helped broker alignment among the most divergent of viewpoints. He frequently helps clients simplify their thinking in order to tell more compelling stories, with a particular focus on vision, strategy, culture, and process.
Tim’s clients include Netflix, Boston Dynamics, Kaiser Permanente, Red Bull, and many more.
As a facilitator, Tim is generous with his time and believes in meeting people where they are. Tim is also well known on Instagram for his ongoing plot to intricately (and covertly) illustrate every airplane barf bag he encounters.
Tracy Granzyk, MS, MFA | Senior Solutions Consultant
Tracy is a Senior Solutions Consultant at parent company TiER1 Performance by day and a longtime freelance writer by night. During the day, she spearheads transformative initiatives within the life sciences and healthcare sectors, focusing on digital transformations, omnichannel marketing, communication strategies, and organizational change management.
Outside of TiER1, Tracy is the founding editor-in-chief at Please See Me, an online literary magazine that elevates the health-related story of vulnerable populations and those who care for them. And she is the founding and former senior director of the Center for Healthcare Narratives at the MedStar Institute for Quality and Safety and a longtime faculty member at the Academy for Emerging Leaders in Patient Safety, where she helps patients and healthcare professionals tell their stories.
Tracy has written, directed, and produced award-winning healthcare films; published numerous articles on health-related topics; and served as a ghost writer on longform fiction and creative nonfiction projects. Her innate storytelling talent has driven impactful change across numerous causes and business ventures.
What Our Learners Say
Line Morkbak
Facilitator of Global Collaboration, Global LEAP
Caitlin Dodge
CEO, Think Argus
Cheryl Giua
Culture Transformation Lead, Guardian Life
“This is a great course for any professional looking for a new way to help inspire change.”
Noelle Broughton
Development Program Manager, StockX
“The Storytelling For Change course helped me break down the story elements and see the most important parts; it helped me keep my eyes on the goal post.”
Megan Stephenson
Communications Director, North Sound ACH
“This course was exactly what I needed. The instructor’s command of storytelling was so inspiring. You will be a force of nature progressing your work!”
Michael Baranowski
Change & Transformation Director
Hannah Harrison
VP, Deposit Services Manager, WSFS Bank
David Doubell
Creative Director, Penquin
Explore More Resources
For more information about the content that will be covered and what to expect throughout the course, download our course syllabus.
FAQ
Q: Why should I trust XPLANE?
A: XPLANE has been helping leaders worldwide tell impactful change stories since 1993. We’re experts in simplifying an overwhelming amount of data into a clear, engaging narrative that people can understand and align around.
Our storytelling methods help organizations’ employees buy-in to a new culture, adopt a new process or methodology, align around a new vision, and more.
With more than 30 years of trying and learning on real projects with our clients, we’re eager to share our methods and resources with you to help you create impactful stories for positive change.
Q: I’m super busy. How many hours will I need to invest? What’s the estimated course hours and assignment time?
A: Our course is built to fit your busy schedule. It includes:
- 90 minutes of asynchronous video content—available to view at your own pace.
- 6 hours of live workshop sessions—spread out over three nonconsecutive days (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) for 2 hours each day.
- The opportunity to practice key skills and get instructor and peer feedback during the live workshop sessions.