+ACUMEN Storytelling for Change
Module 2 Readings
LEADERSHIP PRESENCE FRAMEWORK
We believe that storytelling is an invaluable tool to enhance your Leadership PRESence, a
concept that is at the heart of what we will be exploring in the course.
As Greta mentioned in her video, Leadership PRESence is defined by The Ariel Group, as “The
ability to connect with the hearts and minds of others in order to inspire them towards a desired
outcome.”
Please review this chapter (9 pages long) from the book Leadership Presence: Dramatic
Techniques to Reach Out, Motivate and Inspire by Belle Linda Halpern and Kathy Lubar,
included here to deepen your understanding of this concept.
• What concepts are new to you?
• How does this concept relate to what you previously knew about leadership?
• Can you think of any individuals who have the Leadership PRESence as defined by The
Ariel Group? What is notable about the individual? How does that person make you feel?
OPTIONAL: The Ariel Group offers a free online Leadership Presence assessment tool.
OPTIONAL: Articles from The Ariel Group blog on Leadership PRESence
• Presence: The Great Differentiator
• Opening Windows: Building Leadership Presence with Personal Stories
• The Quiet Leader (for natural introverts)
• Tips for a Better Phone Presence
• Skyping with Presence
• 5 Ways to Reach Out to a Virtual Colleague
• The Presence of A (Woman) Leader
• All Apologies: Women, Leadership & Presence
STORYTELLING AND LEADERSHIP PRESENCE
As described in the book, effective leaders have mastered the following qualities:
• Being Present: The ability to be completely in the moment and flexible enough to handle
the unexpected
• Reaching Out: The ability to build relationships with others through empathy, listening,
and authentic connection
• Expressiveness: The ability to express feelings and emotions appropriately by using all
means of expression – words, voice, body, face – to deliver one congruent message
• Self-Knowing: The ability to accept themselves, to be authentic, and to reflect their
values in their decisions and actions
The EQ Check-In video that you’ve reviewed in this module is one of the ways in which you can
self reflect on how ‘Present’ you are in a particular setting. If you are taking this course in a
team, you will have an opportunity to practice it in your team meeting.
If you’ve already watched the video Demonstration of Personal Stories for this module, think
back on how these storytellers demonstrated each of the qualities illustrated in the PRESence
framework.
Both of the storytellers in the video selected a specific moment and used that personal story to
deliver their key message in their presentation.
For this module’s exercise we invite you to start thinking about moments in your life, your
personal story, that you would like to work on for this course. We will support you identifying
the stories to work on, crafting and fine tuning them and helping you to practice the key
storytelling techniques with those stories for the rest of this course.
Remember, there are different messages you can deliver by using your personal stories. We’ve
presented some examples in the previous module (i.e. tell who you are, tell who you/your
organization/your community are, teach a lesson, motivate change, change the frame), and
suggest thinking about what would be most exciting for you to work on during this course—start
brainstorming!
The next page is an optional worksheet for getting started.
IDENTIFYING YOUR STORY
This worksheet is optional. Use this only if you think this will help you brainstorm and identify
your story/key message of your presentation.
Think back to moments in your life to find a personal story that you could use to support your
presentation’s key message. You can either start from identifying particular moments in your
life, or from the key message that you want to deliver. Go back to your Life Map from the
previous module to identify potential stories to work on.
For this module’s assignment, you need to choose one of your ideas you’ve listed above and
submit a) your key message and b) a short personal story (a moment) you’ve decided to use to
support they key message. If you need other’s input, share your ideas on the Discussion Forum
for feedback.
Distinctive moment(s)/ potential story
Key message that the story could support
Distinctive moment(s)/ potential story
Key message that the story could support
Distinctive moment(s)/ potential story
Key message that the story could support
