Hutchens - Circle of the 9 muses: a storytelling field guide for innovators and meaning makers

A Slice of Trust: The Leadership Secret with the Hot & Fruity Filling (with Barry Rellaford)

The Learning Fables Series

Outlearning the Wolves: Surviving and Thriving in a Learning Organization

Shadows of the Neanderthal: Illuminating the Beliefs That Limit Our Organizations

The Lemming Dilemma: Living with Purpose, Leading with Vision

The Tip of the Iceberg: Managing the Hidden Forces That Can Make or Break Your Organization

Listening to the Volcano: Conversations That Open Our Minds to New Possibilities

Copyright 2015 by David Hutchens. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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ISBN 978-1-118-97396-7 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-97412-4 (ePDF); ISBN 978-1-118-97411-7 (ePub)

For my mother, Pat Hutchens,
story maker, author of family legacy, weaver of a narrative that extends into the future

Think about the role of the narrator in movies you've seen. You know, After that magical summer, nothing was ever the same again... The narrator is the voice that comments on the story and draws meaning from it.

What is the story your team is living?

Which parts of the story will you direct their attention to?

What will you say to help them draw meaning from it?

In museums, the curator makes decisions about which pieces of art to display, and how to sequence them to tell a bigger story. Women in the Renaissance is a curator decision.

What is the bigger story that you want to create for your career, your team, and your organization?

What individual stories do you need to purposefully find and tellcurateso that you can begin creating that bigger story?

Where will you find those stories? Who has them? How will you put them on display for others?

Storytelling is influence. And when you tell stories purposefully, you establish identity. Build culture. Speed the change process. Enrich the brand. Align people to the strategy. Attract talent. Engage the marketplace. Capture knowledge. Lead. Grow. Connect.

Are you telling stories?

Are you telling the right stories?

Are you telling them in ways that engage, connect, and move people?

Ready to get started?

Are you sure this is the place?

As I pull into the cramped parking lot, my wife Robbie isn't confident.

This is the place, I assure her as I seize upon the last parking space, and it's not hard to imagine every first-timer asking the same question. Seeing it situated in a generic strip mall between a dry cleaner and a furniture store, one would never guess that this suburban Tennessee retail space would be home to one of the most influential venues of the modern music industry.

This is the legendary Bluebird Cafe, and in Nashville where songwriting is a sacrament, the Bluebird is the high temple. This cramped 90-seat club has launched the careers of country music stars like Pam Tillis and Garth Brooks while also supplying them with many of their greatest songs. It is a nest where stories are nurtured and then released into the wild.

I lead Robbie past the locals and tourists who line the sidewalk, bundled against the cold and hoping to score a seat inside. We head straight to the VIP entrance. Tonight, we're here at the invitation of my friend Billy Kirsch, who has written songs for Wynonna Judd, Faith Hill, and many others. His songs are rich in storytelling, and one of themtitled Holes in the Floor of Heavenwas named the Song of the Year by the Country Music Association a few years ago. As we find our way to our cramped table, we wave to Billy, who is just a few feet away from us, along with three other songwriters who are tuning their instruments and sitting in a circle facing one another. In the round, they call it.

As people find their seats and the show begins, there is no rowdy laughter like one hears in other clubs. The audience at the Bluebird Cafe is respectful and hushed, like parishioners waiting for church to start. With only minimal instrumentationoften just an acoustic guitar or a keyboardthese accomplished songwriters will take turns sipping their beers, singing songs, and telling stories.

Billy begins the evening by picking out just a few chords on his keyboard. The crowd immediately applauds in recognition and, as Billy starts to sing, people quietly mouth the familiar words:

One day shy of 8 years old

When grandma passed away

I was a broken-hearted little boy

Blowing out that birthday cake...

It is spellbinding. The audience members bob their heads in unison, creating an effect of waves rippling through the room. And when Billy sings the chorus