StoryStudio Gets Members’ Attention at CIW Lab
Chicago Ideas Week (CIW) kicked off its year-round programming with a bold move: Asking members, “May I have your attention?” with a Lab led by StoryStudio’s Jill Pollack this past Wednesday, April 23.
Pollack drew on her vast experience as a storyteller and teacher as she took attendees on an exploration of how to use stories to gain—and keep—people’s attention in business settings. 18 CIW members gathered at Grind, a co-working space on LaSalle, to improve their storytelling abilities, break down the elements of a captivating story and workshop short stories with the group.
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StoryStudio’s Jill Pollack led members through a story’s
arc at CIW’s first year-round event.
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The members in attendance represented a wide range of industries—from large corporations like United to start-up businesses to academia—but all in attendance agreed that the creation of compelling stories is becoming increasingly important in their careers.
“Stories have been with us since the dawn of time,” Pollack said at the beginning of the workshop, “and doesn’t it seem like just now we’re waking up and talking about them?”
The talk at the story lab veered from a discussion of story arcs, the selective use of details and the importance of establishing a creative process. She also urged members to use language and word choice as a way to put their own twist on their stories, explaining that word choice is a storyteller’s “thumbprint.”
“This really helped me in terms of thinking [from] a practical perspective,” Gregory Tall said. “I’ve been focusing on narrative, not process.”
CIW member Margaret Chaidez similarly embraced the practicality of the Lab. She came in with a specific story she wanted to tell: the importance of building a playground in Downers Grove District 58, which currently does not have any. With the help of other members, she has now refined her story, produced a video and will be launching an Indiegogo campaign in the coming weeks. Chaidez credited the Lab with helping her view her story in a new light.
“I think I’ll be able to get out of the weeds and see the bigger picture,” CIW member Kelly Jameson agreed.
Members’ distinct storytelling styles were on display as they shared snippets of stories about experiences from early in their working lives that they workshopped during the hour-and-a-half session. Members used inventive hooks—like Tim Ressmeyer’s bold opening line, “I lied about my age to get the job”—and shared details that allowed listeners to picture the story’s setting.
Pollack had no doubt that the participants would be able to use storytelling in the workplace. “I think all of them had a lot of stories hidden inside them,” Pollack concluded of the session.
To become a CIW member, visit chicagoideas.com/membership.
