Overview
Through narrative and storytelling, we—as individuals, communities and nations—can learn how to make choices in response to the challenges of the uncertain world we live in. Narrative is how we communicate our values through stories, bringing alive the motivation we need for changing the world. Because it engages the head and the heart, narrative can instruct and inspire, not only teaching us about why we should act but also moving us to take action.
In this course, participants will learn the public narrative framework and will develop stories about why they are called to leadership (“story of self”), how their values are connected to the collective values of their communities (“story of us”), and what challenges to our values demand urgent action (“story of now”). They will also learn how to effectively coach and support others in developing and sharing their stories.
Who is this course for?
- Open to new things: Participants should be movement-focused people who want to learn a framework for organizing. We welcome folks who are totally new to organizing, or who have been doing organizing for some time but don’t feel like they have a good structure for it.
- Relational & people-focused: Ideal participants are excited to build relationships, to invest in the leadership of others, and to build teams of purpose-driven leaders.
- Involved in movement work: We seek to support organizers who are currently part of an organizing effort or are seeking to build one alongside others they know.
Ideal applicants come from all walks of life, from seasoned organizers and campaigners looking to sharpen their skills, to beginners who are passionate about organizing and want to start their learning journey. Here are some attributes shared by all our applicants:
Organizing Insight: You don’t need to be a professional organizer but we’re looking for applicants with some experience doing organizing and/or community-building work on the ground. That work can be tied to grassroots, electoral, and/or issue organizing. We seek to support people who are currently part of an organizing/community-building effort or are seeking to develop one.
Dedication to Inclusive Politics and Intersectional Solutions: At re:power, we center race, class, gender and sexuality across all our trainings—it’s part of our practice of inclusive politics. We want organizers to be open to new ideas regarding it and to the ideas and contributions from their fellow organizers who will reflect our diverse communities.
Course Expectations
This is an interactive course with live practice. We ask participants to write in the chat box, share verbally, and participate in breakout group discussion. During breakouts, all participants will be asked to practice. We encourage, but do not require, participants to turn on video at all times, and especially during breakout discussions. If you are unable or unwilling to practice during breakouts, we ask that you let our Lead Trainer know, and you will not be placed in a breakout room. While we will respect that choice, we offer that this course may not be for you as the bulk of the learning happens in the breakout practice.
Lesson Plan
Narrative for Leadership & Story of Self
- Learn about the power of storytelling as a leadership tool
- Practice developing and sharing a personal narrative
- Practice asking curious questions and coaching others’ narratives
Story of Us
- Learn how to use group narratives to intervene in moments of crisis, and elevate moments of celebration
- Practice developing and sharing community narratives that motivate & inspire people
- Practice asking curious questions and coaching others’ narratives
Story of Now & Linked Narratives
- Learn how to use stories of urgency and opportunity to agitate and motivate action
- Practice developing and sharing stories that cut through the noise and focus activity
- Practice asking curious questions and coaching others’ narratives
