Today, more and more people are talking about how stories can be used to create change, build culture, disseminate learning, and capture knowledge. Thinkers like former World Bank vice president Stephen Denning are elevating the discourse with disciplined tomes like The Leader's Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative (Jossey-Bass, 2005). Some of my colleagues and clients have revised their organizations' leadership competency models to include storytelling as a core capability. And an unmistakable constructivist tone is creeping into the business vernacular: "Markets are conversations," claimed one dramatic online manifesto as it slapped organizations out of their comas and challenged them to find more relevant and human ways of talking with customers and among themselves.

Storytelling is innate and it is intuitive. And yet I encounter a lot of people who feel anxious about it.

"I don't have the charisma or speaking skills to be a good storyteller," many people tell me.

"Neither do I," I say. "I think it is more important to tell the right story than it is to tell the story well."

"Stories aren't going to fly in my culture," they say.

I think you will be surprised," I say. "The stories are already in your culture. It's just a matter of recognizing and relaying the right ones to create the future that you desire."

"Storytelling is a soft skill," executives whisper.

I counter: "Storytelling is a solid business discipline that goes to the core of your leadership."

From launching a new Operations Center in record time to eliminating polio worldwide, how can groups come together to create new realities rather than replicate the status quo? What shifts do we need to make to move from hopelessness and conflict to commitment and action in the face of such daunting challenges? At this year's conference, we'll build on the themes of interdependence and collaboration to explore what distinguishes a transcendent performance from a merely excellent one--and how we can work together to produce an effect greater than the sum of our individual contributions.

At this conference, participants will:

• Learn from accomplished leaders whose performance exemplifies the power of collaboration
• Take away proven methods for bridging differences and catalyzing effective action by building trust and shared purpose
• Explore change methodologies such as social networking, storytelling, and conversations that matter
• Practice using systems thinking tools and models to understand and navigate complex environments
• Connect with a community of passionate practitioners determined to co-create new realities

We invite you to propose a session that will help conference participants leverage systems thinking and the disciplines of organizational learning to reach across differences, at work and in the public arena, to achieve shared purpose that transcends individual intention. Proposals must be submitted by February 8. Click here for submission guidelines.

Deep early registration discounts now in effect. Individuals register for just $995 through February 29!

Teams of 4 or more pay even less.
Call for details at 1-800-272- 0945.

Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program, which co-sponsored the video project along with the Global Environment Facility, World Bank, and Global Initiatives, Inc., observed: "When Sting released 'Fragile' exactly 20 years ago, the world was just waking up to the environmental challenges unfolding across the globe. Twenty years on, we are witnessing fragility everywhere, from Sting's beloved rainforests to the world's fisheries, coral reefs and wetlands--fragility that is accelerating as a result of climate change and a collective mismanagement of the Earth's economically important natural and nature-based resources."

"But we have cost-effective choices. If we can climate-proof economies and realize a transition to a low-carbon society, then perhaps we can also meet these other challenges and in doing so, build resilience and sustainability into a Fragile Earth." In the video, Sting, an avid environmentalist, adds his own call to action: "We cannot solve a crisis with the same mindset that created it. It's up to you and me to get active and to make the changes we want to see in the world."