Marshall Ganz teaching a class

Public Narrative: Online Course

Introduction

Learn from Professor Marshall Ganz through this Resistance School course on the organising skill of public narrative.

Marshall Ganz made the following points in What is Public Narrative (2008):

  • Public narrative is a leadership art. Leaders draw on narrative to inspire action across cultures, faiths, professions, classes, and eras.
  • A story of self communicates who I am – my values, my experience, why I do what I do.
  • A story of us communicates who we are – our shared values, our shared experience, and why we do what we do.
  • A story of now transforms the present into a moment of challenge, hope, and choice.

Lessons

Lesson 1: Introduction to Public Narrative

Professor Ganz outlines the goals of this session on public narrative.

Lesson 2: Approach to Leadership

Learn a new way to think about leadership that focuses on understanding your story, your relationship to others, and why now is the time to act.

Lesson 3: Theory of Organizing

Learn a theory of organizing based on shared stories, relationships, structures, strategies, and actions.

Lesson 4: Professor Ganz’s Story of Self

Learn about Professor Ganz’s personal journey through organizing and academia, and learn from the way he shares his own story of self.

Lesson 5: Motivation Through Story

Learn about the importance of emotion and how to counteract inhibitors like isolation, with action motivators like solidarity.

Lesson 6: How to Tell a Story

Learn how to craft an effective story that communicates hope, creates empathy and identifies values that connect us.

Lesson 7: Public Narrative Example

Watch a powerful example of a public narrative and identify when the speaker is telling a story of self, a story of us, and a story of now.

Lesson 8: Debrief of the Example

Debrief the James Croft narrative with Professor Ganz as he identifies how the speaker so effectively communicated hope and called us to action.

Lesson 9: Introduction to Story of Self

Learn the importance of telling your own story, drawing on moments and experiences so that others can begin to understand you.

Lesson 10: Questions for a Story of Self

Professor Ganz asks a series of questions to coach a Resistance School student in creating a story of self.

Lesson 11: Introduction to Coaching Others

Learn the important elements of coaching others to help them create their story of self.

Lesson 12: Do’s and Don’ts of Coaching

Watch examples of the do’s and don’ts of coaching to learn how to become a better coach by giving strategic feedback and asking the right questions.

 Lesson 13: Debrief the Do’s and Don’ts

Debrief the examples of do’s and don’ts of coaching with Professor Ganz to better understand how to build the capacity of another.

Lesson 14: Debrief the Public Narrative Course

Cover the major lessons and takeaways from the Public Narrative session with highlights provided by Resistance School students.

Lesson 15: Conclusion and How to Applaud


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