In a nut-shell, narrative work is about story-telling. But it's also about story-listening. I work with clients to help them better understand and tell their own story (orally and in writing), helping them to better express how they feel about a certain experience and how their lives have changed because of that event. Clients present better when they have well organized facts and thoughts, when they know how they feel and are able to best articulate their experience and their feelings surrounding it.
It's not unusual for clients to produce a written account of their story that's fills a mountain of single-spaced pages, often without chronological order or economy of text, nor restraint of strong emotions, emotions that, although appropriate to their experience, could nonetheless be detrimental to their desired outcome. This type of account often results in confusion and disinterest in the reader/listener, and if the client's efforts are left unread, are easily forgotten, it's over before it ever began.
I work with the client through in-person, phone/skype interviews, listening to their story, not only with my ears but with my heart as well, and prepare a written and visual account of events and feelings, placed in a factual, chronological time-line, giving the reader accurate and concise information that uses just the right amount of fact-telling and heart-tugging to create a package that best represents the client and their experience, while at the same time, hooking the reader. As well, I work to prepare the client for in-personal interviews by coaching them how best to tell their story, how best to present themselves in order to be heard, really heard.
You've only got one shot at a first impression, and a fully prepared client and their narrative, one that balances the factual with the emotional, will go a long way in having the client not only heard, but more importantly, understood and remembered. Only by touching another's heart is real, sustainable change made.
Applications of narrative work:
• Lawyers working in personal injury litigation, (I've a passion for medical harm issues) • All types of mediation • Family issues • Interpersonal relationships • Conflict within organizations • Conflict in the workplace
Where can narrative coaching be done?
• In-person at my Wolfville office • In-person at the client's home • In-person at the lawyer's office • Via Skype or phone, making this service readily available to those at a distance
Who could benefit from narrative coaching?
Everyone! Life is about relationships, and in every relationship, at some point, you'll find varying degrees of conflict. Contact me and find out how I can help you prepare to deal with the conflict in your life.