{"id":218449,"date":"2023-11-13T13:10:02","date_gmt":"2023-11-13T18:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thewaterproject.org\/community\/?p=218449"},"modified":"2024-01-23T09:04:29","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T14:04:29","slug":"the-stories-we-tell-at-a-storytelling-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewaterproject.org\/community\/2023\/11\/13\/the-stories-we-tell-at-a-storytelling-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"The Stories We Tell at a Storytelling Conference"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When I started at The Water Project (TWP) in 2021, I was a Program Services Reporting Officer \u2014 one of the people who writes and compiles the reports our donors get about their specific project(s) when they give. I carefully crafted my bio for our website, writing, \u201cJamie is a storyteller by nature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, in May of this year, TWP made me a Copywriter \u2014 an honor and privilege I thank the universe for every single day \u2014 because ever since I was small, I was writing up stories and dreaming of a day when \u201cwriter\u201d would be part of my job title. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is why I was beyond excited to attend the Nonprofit Storytelling Conference<\/a> in San Diego last week. And why, even after contracting a mystery illness at some point in my travels, I return to my work rejuvenated and more ready to harness the power of storytelling than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The San Diego skyline silhouetted by the rising sun.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In everyday life, stories transport us to different worlds and introduce us to people who never existed. Think about the books, movies, games, and myths that have had a huge impact on your own life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our work at TWP, stories open special places in our hearts for individuals suffering oceans and continents away, although we\u2019ve never met. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I found hundreds of nonprofit staff members just like me, each passionate about the cause they represent. There were causes I never knew existed: music performances for children\u2019s hospitals, after-school programs in cities around our country and the world, disease research organizations, graduate programs for Jewish seminaries \u2014 all worthy in their own right, and all jockeying for people\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I attended sessions on how best to gather interviewees\u2019 consent to share their stories, when and how to gather donors\u2019 opinions through surveys, how to make impactful videos on a limited budget, analyses on viral nonprofit campaigns (remember the Ice Bucket Challenge<\/a>?), how stories impact emotions and vice-versa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stories are for everyone.<\/h2>\n\n\n
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The high-rise hotel where the conference was located.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The final session, facilitated by Floyd Jones<\/a> from Givebutter, turned the concept of storytelling on its head, and asked what stories we, as humans, tell ourselves every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a concept sitting at the intersection of neurology and psychology called autobiographical memory, which is the series of memories and statements we humans use to remind ourselves of who we are as we face new challenges each day. Autobiographical memory, when faced with a dilemma, asks, \u201cBased on all these things I\u2019ve done in the past, what should I do now?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jones started the session by reminding those gathered that there\u2019s significance not only in the stories we tell, but also in the ones we hear and believe. He stated<\/a> that 80% of our daily thoughts are negative, and 95% of them are repetitive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He went on to ask: what negative thoughts are you allowing to circle around in your own head? Is there something you can do to counteract them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This got me thinking. Even the foundations of cognitive behavioral therapy, one of the world\u2019s main treatments for personality and mood disorders today, are about telling self-stories<\/a>. Therapy is, essentially, repeating a narrative often enough, and with enough conviction, to change the neural pathways in your brain. Eventually, your brain will make different connections than the negative ones it\u2019s become accustomed to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s the whole purpose of affirmations: positive statements or mantras we repeat to ourselves to remind ourselves of our self-worth, abilities, and goals. Affirmations are a big thing in the self-improvement world and, occasionally, on TikTok (thanks, Snoop Dogg<\/a>!). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few of my favorites that Jones mentioned in his talk:<\/p>\n\n\n\n