Here is part one of four of my interview about the DaddyTeller Book with Dr. Stan Frager. Fun interview, great host and guests.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 04, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Transcript: What about Fathers and Storytelling Techniques?
(Sean Buvala, author of the DaddyTeller book, talks about bedtime kids stories, storytelling techniques, parenting and fatherhood in an interview on Iowa radio station KBIZ. This is an edited transcript of the interview.)
Voiceover: The mid-morning magazine with Mike continues with page two on 1240 KBIZ.
Mike: Welcome back to mid-morning magazine on this Thursday morning. Well, according to a 2009 national PTA poll, get this my friends, nearly half of all dads fall short of their parental responsibilities. Dads claiming jobs and outside the home responsibilities are seriously limiting their family time. The results can be very serious indeed. Now national storyteller K. Sean Buvala says that one simple solution is to engage your children through bedtime storytelling. Storytelling in all its forms is important for building reading and math skills according to Buvala. He says it’s also an easy way to spend quality time with your children. Now Sean, a father of four has been a full-time national storyteller and business coach for over two decades, nationally traveled workshops and keynote presenter for 23 years, 17 years experience as a youth and family coordinator for a variety of non-profit organizations, founder and director of Storyteller.net, a leading online resource for both tellers and listeners of stories, and has received numerous rewards from the National Storytelling Network. He joins us this morning. With that, I say a very pleasant "good morning," Sean.
Sean: Good morning, Mike, what a great privilege it is to be on programs like yours, thanks for having me.
Mike: It’s nice to have you on. Sean, why is something so simple as telling a bedtime story so important to our kids today?
Sean: You know, Mike one of the things that happens in this world is we as parents, and as grandparents, and aunts, and uncles, we get so busy trying to survive that we miss out on the most basic things that affect our children. One of those things is looking our children in the eye, bonding with them, and passing on our values, That’s the power of telling stories to our children: to pass on our values, to bond with them, to be a hero in their eyes. We talk about fixes to education; but if more parents, more dads, would sit down and spend 20 minutes a day telling stories, not just reading, but telling stories to their kids they’d see a huge improvement in everything about (their child's) education.
Mike: You know, I can remember when my two boys were real little, that’s one of the things we did during the evening time was both my wife and I, we would read stories to the kids and we would read until the point they finally fell asleep. I don’t know if it was because we were boring readers or what, but today, boy, I tell you Sean, it’s a completely different story today. Everybody is too busy doing too many things.
Sean: You know, that’s true. Some of those same studies talk about the fact that we as dads maybe spend, maybe on average, spend thirty minutes a day – and the purpose of my book and my work is not about "let’s bang on dads and say how bad they are." It’s not that at all. It’s to say there’s a way for you to change what you’re doing in 20 minutes a day; not just reading books but even putting those books down and engaging your children completely in the telling of stories. Yeah, it is part of helping them go to sleep at night, you’re completely correct about that. But, it’s more than that. It’s giving them reading skills, math skills, relationship skills as well.
Mike: Sean, I have to tell you, the cover on your book Daddy Teller; I’ve seen a lot of book covers but I think this one’s probably the neatest and the cutest one I’ve ever seen. It’s a picture of a dad, obviously, and his son, little son and they’re just kind of got their foreheads together and to me that’s a pretty touching picture there and a nice cover for your book.
Sean: Thank you very much, I really appreciate that. We worked really hard and went through tons and tons of pictures and said, "which one of these really captured what we were talking about?" It would have been easy to have a bedtime picture on there, but (the book) goes beyond that. Storytelling is not just for bedtime. That photograph is from an Australian photographer and I think she did a great job on it.
Mike: You make a point, Sean, about the difference between reading books and telling stories. Expand on that just a little bit.
Sean: Oh sure. You know there are two different skills that we’re talking about here. There is, of course, a lot of value and importance in reading books to our children and in sharing stories that way. That brings in a very particular set of skills for children to learn; reading skills, following along, all of that. As well as doing that, I help people learn to tell stories. Put that book down, and create stories that can be used to teach children certain values. Sometimes as dads, because of our business in our life, we just kind of pick up the first thing that’s there. What we did in the Daddy Teller book was create eight stories, there’s actually nine when people join the group, but we give them eight stories that tell them exactly what to do, what to say, where to put your hands, all of that. You’ve seen the book, Mike, so you know, it’s all laid out there. There’s a lot of detail in there. I also encourage our children to tell stories back to us. Telling stories back and all of that, those are pre-reading and even, believe it or not, pre-math skills. And so not only when I tell my kids a story am I just having story time, but I’m really helping their future as well.
Mike: In your book, DaddyTeller, you focus very much on helping dads learn storytelling skills. Is there any particular reason why your chose the fathers over maybe the mothers?
Sean: It’s really interesting. I think, as it should be in our world, there is a great deal of support for mothers and mothering. I think sometimes, though we say to dads, "Well how come you’re not doing better?" But, we don’t provide dads the resources for that. The other side of that is very practical. I spend most of my work as a storyteller working in corporate situations, you know people fly me into Iowa and I do these corporate workshops and corporate communication. When I get done with one of those workshops, the men will come up to me, women as well but we’re talking about men, men will come up to me and they don’t talk to me about what I was hired to do this workshop. What they say to me is, "boy I bet your kids are really lucky to have a storytelling dad." And I say "Well, yeah they’ve learned to say 'only tell me the funny parts.'" Then, the men at the conference, they say to me "I wish I could tell stories like that." You know, Mike, they’re not saying to me I wish I could be a storyteller, what these dads are saying, when you get into conversations is, I wish I could communicate with my kids. Isn’t that what all of us want as dads: To really be in real communication with our kids?
Mike: Oh you bet. Now Sean, I’ve got to get myself on even keel here because I know the ladies are probably – if I don’t mention the mothers after the show they’re going to be calling saying, "Hey Mike,you didn’t say a thing about moms here." So, can your book also be used by moms too?
Sean: Absolutely, it’s written very much from a guy perspective. You have a copy in your hands there, so you know that it’s designed as a very unintimidating book. I mean I really designed it for the men in my life; my brothers. (There are) men in my life that hate to read, and so the book is very much written from a guy perspective. I had a woman, another professional storyteller with four sons, say "They’re actually going to be able to read this book." Do mothers use the book? Absolutely and anytime I do a workshop, of course, we’re not eliminating any genders and telling them they can’t be part of this process. The book certainly can be used by anyone who has any connection with children.
Mike: How does a dad get started in telling stories to his child, Sean?
Sean: The first decision is to decide to do it. By far, the thing that I hear the most from men when we talk about the book in the workshop, they say "what if I do it wrong?" To be really honest about it, you can’t do it wrong. When you are looking your children in the eye and talking to them and giving them the attention they deserve for that ten minutes, or that twenty minutes, you will not fail. So that’s the first thing. The other one is to simply dive in and get started. If people go to the (daddyteller.com) website, there’s a free story they can download- they could be telling stories tonight. But just get started. We do a number of little free training videos on the site. So what do I do first? The answer is open your mouth and start telling stories. Don’t, don’t be afraid and don’t worry about failure. It’s not going to happen, not going to happen.
Mike: Well, Sean, I think if more people read your book like I have and also see it, I think our world would change a heck of a lot; there’s no doubt about it. Quickly, how can listeners get a copy of your book?
Sean: The main site is daddyteller.com, and of course the easiest, fastest way as we do in the world now is Amazon.com. So go to Amazon.com and search for Daddy Teller. There’s a couple of different ways to purchase the book. You can also get it as an e-book, as a download from the Daddy Teller site as well. I just hope that people go to the Daddy Teller site because there’s so much free stuff there and resources as well. So, Daddy Teller or Amazon.com.
Mike: Sean, thanks for joining us this morning and thanks for a job well done.
Sean: Thank you and I again really appreciate being on your show. Thanks for your time, Mike.
**********
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Voiceover: The mid-morning magazine with Mike continues with page two on 1240 KBIZ.
Mike: Welcome back to mid-morning magazine on this Thursday morning. Well, according to a 2009 national PTA poll, get this my friends, nearly half of all dads fall short of their parental responsibilities. Dads claiming jobs and outside the home responsibilities are seriously limiting their family time. The results can be very serious indeed. Now national storyteller K. Sean Buvala says that one simple solution is to engage your children through bedtime storytelling. Storytelling in all its forms is important for building reading and math skills according to Buvala. He says it’s also an easy way to spend quality time with your children. Now Sean, a father of four has been a full-time national storyteller and business coach for over two decades, nationally traveled workshops and keynote presenter for 23 years, 17 years experience as a youth and family coordinator for a variety of non-profit organizations, founder and director of Storyteller.net, a leading online resource for both tellers and listeners of stories, and has received numerous rewards from the National Storytelling Network. He joins us this morning. With that, I say a very pleasant "good morning," Sean.
Sean: Good morning, Mike, what a great privilege it is to be on programs like yours, thanks for having me.
Mike: It’s nice to have you on. Sean, why is something so simple as telling a bedtime story so important to our kids today?
Sean: You know, Mike one of the things that happens in this world is we as parents, and as grandparents, and aunts, and uncles, we get so busy trying to survive that we miss out on the most basic things that affect our children. One of those things is looking our children in the eye, bonding with them, and passing on our values, That’s the power of telling stories to our children: to pass on our values, to bond with them, to be a hero in their eyes. We talk about fixes to education; but if more parents, more dads, would sit down and spend 20 minutes a day telling stories, not just reading, but telling stories to their kids they’d see a huge improvement in everything about (their child's) education.
Mike: You know, I can remember when my two boys were real little, that’s one of the things we did during the evening time was both my wife and I, we would read stories to the kids and we would read until the point they finally fell asleep. I don’t know if it was because we were boring readers or what, but today, boy, I tell you Sean, it’s a completely different story today. Everybody is too busy doing too many things.
Sean: You know, that’s true. Some of those same studies talk about the fact that we as dads maybe spend, maybe on average, spend thirty minutes a day – and the purpose of my book and my work is not about "let’s bang on dads and say how bad they are." It’s not that at all. It’s to say there’s a way for you to change what you’re doing in 20 minutes a day; not just reading books but even putting those books down and engaging your children completely in the telling of stories. Yeah, it is part of helping them go to sleep at night, you’re completely correct about that. But, it’s more than that. It’s giving them reading skills, math skills, relationship skills as well.
Mike: Sean, I have to tell you, the cover on your book Daddy Teller; I’ve seen a lot of book covers but I think this one’s probably the neatest and the cutest one I’ve ever seen. It’s a picture of a dad, obviously, and his son, little son and they’re just kind of got their foreheads together and to me that’s a pretty touching picture there and a nice cover for your book.
Sean: Thank you very much, I really appreciate that. We worked really hard and went through tons and tons of pictures and said, "which one of these really captured what we were talking about?" It would have been easy to have a bedtime picture on there, but (the book) goes beyond that. Storytelling is not just for bedtime. That photograph is from an Australian photographer and I think she did a great job on it.
Mike: You make a point, Sean, about the difference between reading books and telling stories. Expand on that just a little bit.
Sean: Oh sure. You know there are two different skills that we’re talking about here. There is, of course, a lot of value and importance in reading books to our children and in sharing stories that way. That brings in a very particular set of skills for children to learn; reading skills, following along, all of that. As well as doing that, I help people learn to tell stories. Put that book down, and create stories that can be used to teach children certain values. Sometimes as dads, because of our business in our life, we just kind of pick up the first thing that’s there. What we did in the Daddy Teller book was create eight stories, there’s actually nine when people join the group, but we give them eight stories that tell them exactly what to do, what to say, where to put your hands, all of that. You’ve seen the book, Mike, so you know, it’s all laid out there. There’s a lot of detail in there. I also encourage our children to tell stories back to us. Telling stories back and all of that, those are pre-reading and even, believe it or not, pre-math skills. And so not only when I tell my kids a story am I just having story time, but I’m really helping their future as well.
Mike: In your book, DaddyTeller, you focus very much on helping dads learn storytelling skills. Is there any particular reason why your chose the fathers over maybe the mothers?
Sean: It’s really interesting. I think, as it should be in our world, there is a great deal of support for mothers and mothering. I think sometimes, though we say to dads, "Well how come you’re not doing better?" But, we don’t provide dads the resources for that. The other side of that is very practical. I spend most of my work as a storyteller working in corporate situations, you know people fly me into Iowa and I do these corporate workshops and corporate communication. When I get done with one of those workshops, the men will come up to me, women as well but we’re talking about men, men will come up to me and they don’t talk to me about what I was hired to do this workshop. What they say to me is, "boy I bet your kids are really lucky to have a storytelling dad." And I say "Well, yeah they’ve learned to say 'only tell me the funny parts.'" Then, the men at the conference, they say to me "I wish I could tell stories like that." You know, Mike, they’re not saying to me I wish I could be a storyteller, what these dads are saying, when you get into conversations is, I wish I could communicate with my kids. Isn’t that what all of us want as dads: To really be in real communication with our kids?
Mike: Oh you bet. Now Sean, I’ve got to get myself on even keel here because I know the ladies are probably – if I don’t mention the mothers after the show they’re going to be calling saying, "Hey Mike,you didn’t say a thing about moms here." So, can your book also be used by moms too?
Sean: Absolutely, it’s written very much from a guy perspective. You have a copy in your hands there, so you know that it’s designed as a very unintimidating book. I mean I really designed it for the men in my life; my brothers. (There are) men in my life that hate to read, and so the book is very much written from a guy perspective. I had a woman, another professional storyteller with four sons, say "They’re actually going to be able to read this book." Do mothers use the book? Absolutely and anytime I do a workshop, of course, we’re not eliminating any genders and telling them they can’t be part of this process. The book certainly can be used by anyone who has any connection with children.
Mike: How does a dad get started in telling stories to his child, Sean?
Sean: The first decision is to decide to do it. By far, the thing that I hear the most from men when we talk about the book in the workshop, they say "what if I do it wrong?" To be really honest about it, you can’t do it wrong. When you are looking your children in the eye and talking to them and giving them the attention they deserve for that ten minutes, or that twenty minutes, you will not fail. So that’s the first thing. The other one is to simply dive in and get started. If people go to the (daddyteller.com) website, there’s a free story they can download- they could be telling stories tonight. But just get started. We do a number of little free training videos on the site. So what do I do first? The answer is open your mouth and start telling stories. Don’t, don’t be afraid and don’t worry about failure. It’s not going to happen, not going to happen.
Mike: Well, Sean, I think if more people read your book like I have and also see it, I think our world would change a heck of a lot; there’s no doubt about it. Quickly, how can listeners get a copy of your book?
Sean: The main site is daddyteller.com, and of course the easiest, fastest way as we do in the world now is Amazon.com. So go to Amazon.com and search for Daddy Teller. There’s a couple of different ways to purchase the book. You can also get it as an e-book, as a download from the Daddy Teller site as well. I just hope that people go to the Daddy Teller site because there’s so much free stuff there and resources as well. So, Daddy Teller or Amazon.com.
Mike: Sean, thanks for joining us this morning and thanks for a job well done.
Sean: Thank you and I again really appreciate being on your show. Thanks for your time, Mike.
**********
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
DaddyTeller Free Training Video #5
(from my www.daddyteller.com site)
Dads: Should you get close to your kids? Yes! The father role in bedtime kids' stories is get close and snuggly. You can't do that with a book in your hands! Here's more information in this free "how to tell a story" video. See all our videos of storytelling techniques at http://www.daddyteller.com/vids .
Dads: Should you get close to your kids? Yes! The father role in bedtime kids' stories is get close and snuggly. You can't do that with a book in your hands! Here's more information in this free "how to tell a story" video. See all our videos of storytelling techniques at http://www.daddyteller.com/vids .
Get the DaddyTeller Paperback at Amazon.com via this link here.
If Amazon is sold out, order a paperback copy of this book direct from the printer. Please click on this link now.
All the free vids are listed on this page here.
Monday, November 09, 2009
The Power of Touch in Bedtime Stories
Even more on how to tell a story. Storytelling techniques with your own children need to include touch. When you buy the DaddyTeller.com book, you will be able to acces many more in-depth videos as well.
You can learn more about or buy the DaddyTeller™ book at this link now. There are many more free DaddyTeller™ videos at this link here.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
You can learn more about or buy the DaddyTeller™ book at this link now. There are many more free DaddyTeller™ videos at this link here.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
A DaddyTeller Moment.
A quick DaddyTeller moment:
Good day at the Mesa Storytelling festival yesterday. Met a Dad there who had purchased the www.daddyteller.com Ebook and had already told one of the stories to his preschool kid. The Dad said how much he liked the breakdown of the book all the way to telling him what to do with his hands during the story.
When he told the preschool son in his arms that I was the guy who wrote the "donkey story," the child was completey unimpressed wtih me, but totally in love with his Daddy. As.It.Should.Be.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Good day at the Mesa Storytelling festival yesterday. Met a Dad there who had purchased the www.daddyteller.com Ebook and had already told one of the stories to his preschool kid. The Dad said how much he liked the breakdown of the book all the way to telling him what to do with his hands during the story.
When he told the preschool son in his arms that I was the guy who wrote the "donkey story," the child was completey unimpressed wtih me, but totally in love with his Daddy. As.It.Should.Be.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Thursday, October 08, 2009
3 Things Dads Can Do to Communicate Better with Their Children
The world needs fathers. Study after study confirms the important role of the father in a family. Let's improve your father-children relationship. Here are three quick and easy ways for Dads to relate better to their children.
1. Put down the distractions.
If you want to communicate better with your young kids, then learn to pay attention. Listening to a child while you channel surf, web surf or refrigerator surf is not really listening. Put down the remote or the mouse or close the 'fridge door. Pay attention to what your child is saying. By the way, this rule changes a bit when your kids, especially your sons, are older. A great way to get your teens to talk is do a shared activity together. You'll notice that I used the word "shared" in that sentence, right?
2. Look your child in the eye.
All the media your child is exposed to shares one thing in common: all of it has your child's eyes and ears glued upon it. When you talk to your child, do you have their eye-contact? One of the greatest gifts we give to our children is looking them in the eye. Let them see you seeing them. Put down the storybook and tell them a story. Involve them in the tale. Advertisers are not hesitant to look your kids in the eye. You should do no less.
3. Make your child's needs the priority.
As more and more dads, thankfully, become much more active in parenting, I read more about fathers who do not like kiddie things. I have read several posts, for example, about how some stay-at-home dads don't like kid's music and wish to substitute rock artists for kids musicians.
Although some of these daddy-blogger posts are written tongue-in-cheek, there is an underlying issue: kid things are not designed for dads. They are designed for kids. Don't be in a hurry to bypass the usefulness of all the kiddie toys and noise that is out there.
The "Wheels On The Bus" song is driving you crazy? Let it make you crazy and let your kids listen to it a hundred times a day if they want. Raising four kids in our house, I can assure you that this phase doesn't last long. Very soon, you'll be dealing with the wheels on the car which is under your teen's control as it is driven from your home.
The repetition of songs and stories is important for your child's development and even future skills for learning and school. Be focused on what your kids need, not what you want.
In reality, all three of these ideas are really expressing the same need: Dads, give your kids the gift of your attention. You don't need to be father of the year. You need to be the best daddy you can to your kids.
**********
Sean Buvala, father of four and a professional storyteller, is the author of the book "DaddyTeller™: Be a Hero to Your Kids and Teach Them What's Really Important by Telling Them One Simple Story at a Time." You can read more about his Daddy/Child improving work by visiting http://www.daddyteller.com.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
1. Put down the distractions.
If you want to communicate better with your young kids, then learn to pay attention. Listening to a child while you channel surf, web surf or refrigerator surf is not really listening. Put down the remote or the mouse or close the 'fridge door. Pay attention to what your child is saying. By the way, this rule changes a bit when your kids, especially your sons, are older. A great way to get your teens to talk is do a shared activity together. You'll notice that I used the word "shared" in that sentence, right?
2. Look your child in the eye.
All the media your child is exposed to shares one thing in common: all of it has your child's eyes and ears glued upon it. When you talk to your child, do you have their eye-contact? One of the greatest gifts we give to our children is looking them in the eye. Let them see you seeing them. Put down the storybook and tell them a story. Involve them in the tale. Advertisers are not hesitant to look your kids in the eye. You should do no less.
3. Make your child's needs the priority.
As more and more dads, thankfully, become much more active in parenting, I read more about fathers who do not like kiddie things. I have read several posts, for example, about how some stay-at-home dads don't like kid's music and wish to substitute rock artists for kids musicians.
Although some of these daddy-blogger posts are written tongue-in-cheek, there is an underlying issue: kid things are not designed for dads. They are designed for kids. Don't be in a hurry to bypass the usefulness of all the kiddie toys and noise that is out there.
The "Wheels On The Bus" song is driving you crazy? Let it make you crazy and let your kids listen to it a hundred times a day if they want. Raising four kids in our house, I can assure you that this phase doesn't last long. Very soon, you'll be dealing with the wheels on the car which is under your teen's control as it is driven from your home.
The repetition of songs and stories is important for your child's development and even future skills for learning and school. Be focused on what your kids need, not what you want.
In reality, all three of these ideas are really expressing the same need: Dads, give your kids the gift of your attention. You don't need to be father of the year. You need to be the best daddy you can to your kids.
**********
Sean Buvala, father of four and a professional storyteller, is the author of the book "DaddyTeller™: Be a Hero to Your Kids and Teach Them What's Really Important by Telling Them One Simple Story at a Time." You can read more about his Daddy/Child improving work by visiting http://www.daddyteller.com.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
DaddyTeller™ Ebook Now Released!
From Storyteller.net:
Today we launch our latest Ebook! DaddyTeller™ has arrived.
Focusing on helping any Dad tell stories to his kids, this affordable Ebook is available today with an instant download by visiting http://www.daddyteller.com.
(Moms can use this Ebook, too. Just know that it's written in guy-speak.)
Written by award-winning K. Sean Buvala, a 23 year veteran of the storytelling movement, we help Dad put down the storybooks and look into the eyes of his children while he tells them stories that pass on values, build communication, improve reading and math skills and create memories that will live far beyond the moment.
Filled with training and coaching, the book includes 8 stories with step-by-step instructions on what to say and how to say it. Going beyond fathering tips, this is a very specific guidebook.
The "DaddyTeller™: Be a Hero to Your Kids and Teach Them What's Important by Telling Them One Simple Story at a Time" Ebook is available now at the initial launch price of just $14.95.
This Ebook is just the beginning of the DaddyTeller™ project. Be part of the first to join this unique learning and telling community.
The official blog for K. Sean Buvala, storyteller and storytelling coach.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Expert Hails Disney’s New Movie "Bedtime Stories" for featuring the Number One Success Skill for Parents to Presidents.
For Immediate Release
Avondale, AZ- "Telling stories, that is using imagination and seeing situations from new perspectives, is the number one success skill for anyone, from parents to presidents," says K. Sean Buvala, the executive director of Storyteller.net and a national speaking coach for companies and their employees.
"Disney’s new movie ’Bedtime Stories’ of course illustrates the power of storytelling to and with children, but many folks also can learn to use storytelling as their primary tool for expressing the dreams, goals and successes of their business life. The essential concepts used for sharing storytelling with children come into play in any business situation. In the end, the only thing that causes one business to stand out over their competitors is their company story."
Buvala, a veteran of 23 years of professional storytelling, offers five quick tips for any parent who wants to tell stories for and with their child:
1. Learn to accept and use your skills as they are.
In the minds of your children, every story you tell is perfect. So, relax, slow down and think about what happens. Every story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. Once you think of those parts, just let the picture unfold in your mind and speak it to your child. Put down the "professional" story books and tell stories from your own experiences and memories.
2. Let your children add to the story as you go along.
Just like in the movie, if your child wants to add raining gumdrops, space creatures or fire balls, take those items and let them grow in your story. That way, you teach your child to use their imagination and that their contributions to a conversation are valuable. Don’t be too quick to correct for the "right" way to have a story progress.
3. Look your children in the eye.
Buvala says, "I’ve trained parents to tell stories to their children and CEO’s to tell the narrative of their company to board members. In all cases, looking sincerely at your audience expresses interest, increases bonding and grows credibility. Give your children a gift and look at them when you tell stories."
4. Use a variety in your words, not just baby-talk.
Children, from tots to teens, best learn language by hearing it used in conversation. Avoid the temptation to use baby talk with your children. Children grow to be adults so speak like an adult, varying words as you speak. For example, instead of "fast" you might say "quickly" or "rapidly," pausing to briefly define words as you go, if needed. In many cases, children get the meaning of words from the context of your story.
5. Start communicating with your teens before they are teens.
One of the most powerful ways to communicate with teens is by laying the groundwork for conversation while they are young. Storytelling by parents teaches young children that they are important enough to be the center of attention for a few moments during each story. Storytelling also teaches children the power of words, the ebb and flow of conversation and sequencing their thoughts, tools any teenager should have.
Buvala also states these same rules apply to storytelling in business. "Everyone starts where they are with their skills. In today’s market, customers respond better to genuine sharing instead of polished advertising. Also, our business stories are ongoing and when customers can add to the story via social networking, focus groups, feedback forms and so on, they take greater ownership. Being genuinely interested in our customers’ experiences and communicating face-to-face whenever possible is always a chance for growth. Finally, it’s important from the beginning that our corporate approach be one that treats our customers with respect, never talking down to them, explaining things as needed, making a focus on customer needs."
Buvala teaches a multi-day workshop for anyone who wants to learn to use storytelling for business, sales, non-profit or family use. For more information, please visit the website of "Ancient Secret of Public Speaking Workshop" at executivespeakertraining.com.
Contact:
K. Sean Buvala
PO Box 392
Tolleson, AZ 85353
http://www.executivespeakertraining.com
623.298.4548
Keywords:
parenting , business coaching , storytelling , movie , disney , bedtime stories , family , public speaking
###
***View this press release here:
http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200812/1229643560.html
Avondale, AZ- "Telling stories, that is using imagination and seeing situations from new perspectives, is the number one success skill for anyone, from parents to presidents," says K. Sean Buvala, the executive director of Storyteller.net and a national speaking coach for companies and their employees.
"Disney’s new movie ’Bedtime Stories’ of course illustrates the power of storytelling to and with children, but many folks also can learn to use storytelling as their primary tool for expressing the dreams, goals and successes of their business life. The essential concepts used for sharing storytelling with children come into play in any business situation. In the end, the only thing that causes one business to stand out over their competitors is their company story."
Buvala, a veteran of 23 years of professional storytelling, offers five quick tips for any parent who wants to tell stories for and with their child:
1. Learn to accept and use your skills as they are.
In the minds of your children, every story you tell is perfect. So, relax, slow down and think about what happens. Every story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. Once you think of those parts, just let the picture unfold in your mind and speak it to your child. Put down the "professional" story books and tell stories from your own experiences and memories.
2. Let your children add to the story as you go along.
Just like in the movie, if your child wants to add raining gumdrops, space creatures or fire balls, take those items and let them grow in your story. That way, you teach your child to use their imagination and that their contributions to a conversation are valuable. Don’t be too quick to correct for the "right" way to have a story progress.
3. Look your children in the eye.
Buvala says, "I’ve trained parents to tell stories to their children and CEO’s to tell the narrative of their company to board members. In all cases, looking sincerely at your audience expresses interest, increases bonding and grows credibility. Give your children a gift and look at them when you tell stories."
4. Use a variety in your words, not just baby-talk.
Children, from tots to teens, best learn language by hearing it used in conversation. Avoid the temptation to use baby talk with your children. Children grow to be adults so speak like an adult, varying words as you speak. For example, instead of "fast" you might say "quickly" or "rapidly," pausing to briefly define words as you go, if needed. In many cases, children get the meaning of words from the context of your story.
5. Start communicating with your teens before they are teens.
One of the most powerful ways to communicate with teens is by laying the groundwork for conversation while they are young. Storytelling by parents teaches young children that they are important enough to be the center of attention for a few moments during each story. Storytelling also teaches children the power of words, the ebb and flow of conversation and sequencing their thoughts, tools any teenager should have.
Buvala also states these same rules apply to storytelling in business. "Everyone starts where they are with their skills. In today’s market, customers respond better to genuine sharing instead of polished advertising. Also, our business stories are ongoing and when customers can add to the story via social networking, focus groups, feedback forms and so on, they take greater ownership. Being genuinely interested in our customers’ experiences and communicating face-to-face whenever possible is always a chance for growth. Finally, it’s important from the beginning that our corporate approach be one that treats our customers with respect, never talking down to them, explaining things as needed, making a focus on customer needs."
Buvala teaches a multi-day workshop for anyone who wants to learn to use storytelling for business, sales, non-profit or family use. For more information, please visit the website of "Ancient Secret of Public Speaking Workshop" at executivespeakertraining.com.
Contact:
K. Sean Buvala
PO Box 392
Tolleson, AZ 85353
http://www.executivespeakertraining.com
623.298.4548
Keywords:
parenting , business coaching , storytelling , movie , disney , bedtime stories , family , public speaking
###
***View this press release here:
http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200812/1229643560.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
