368 Choose To Step Up And Step In
It’s a strange and frightening world we are living in right now. With divisiveness and anger seeming rampant, it falls to us to maintain our community, to show up with a heart of love and understanding for each other and ourselves, to save our village from burning and refusing to let a lack of empathy and communication drive us to destruction.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Erin Miller discuss the vital importance of community and taking care of one another, of building bridges and allowing our differences to strengthen us instead of divide us, as well as accepting when a bridge cannot be built and an olive branch is refused and trying to find peace with the results.
368 Choose To Step Up And Step In
It’s a strange and frightening world we are living in right now. With divisiveness and anger seeming rampant, it falls to us to maintain our community, to show up with a heart of love and understanding for each other and ourselves, to save our village from burning and refusing to let a lack of empathy and communication drive us to destruction.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Erin Miller discuss the vital importance of community and taking care of one another, of building bridges and allowing our differences to strengthen us instead of divide us, as well as accepting when a bridge cannot be built and an olive branch is refused and trying to find peace with the results.
Highlights
What is your moment of satisfaction or awe in what you do?
Are you giving or just taking?
Sitting down and talking to someone who’s different in some way. Building bridges as opposed to burning them.
Celebrate our differences, do not let them drive us apart. But acknowledging when you cannot build a bridge, and seeking to find peace.
The Cause and Effect of what changes individuals.
It’s okay to sit down and let your community help you.
Quotes
“Yes we are individuals, but we are also a collective. If you don’t feed the collective, if you don’t nurture the collective, the collective won’t nurture you.”
“Give what you want to receive. If you want community, you have to give community. If you want patience you have to give patience, and if you want respect and so on and so on.”
“The problem is we’re not talking to each other, we’re not communicating, and we’re not willing to hear.”
“We need to be able to sit down. We’re adults, we can do this, I believe that we can, and we have the capability to sit down and have discussions.”
“Once I extend an olive branch, if the person burns it, I let the ashes fall where they may. I just let them fall.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
What are you going to take from this conversation? Who will you reach out to, to go and have a cup of coffee without having the intention of changing their mind but with the intention of listening to their story? Find out what matters to them and have a conversation. I would love to hear what happens for you when you choose to step up and step in.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Erin (from her website)
Erin Patrice is the heart and creator behind The Breaking Bread Village, a space intentionally created for people to come together and have transparent conversations with no judgment so ideas and perspectives may be heard respectfully.
Erin is a conversationalist and a Midland, MI, resident and native to Cincinnati, Ohio. She is a mother and wife and has been a community advocate for twenty years.
Erin has an incredible gift of storytelling and connecting with others of all ages. She shares her story in a way that draws people closer rather than apart. She has a unique teaching style that resonates with all who experience it. Erin has years of life experience, training, and facilitating conversations through empathy, strategy, and storytelling.
Erin is dedicated to being a voice for those with no voice and helping the unseen to be seen.
She believes that everything we do within our small communities changes the world because every good deed causes a ripple effect that will eventually impact the world.
Erin shares her teachings as a community engagement ambassador by facilitating workshops, keynote speaking, panels, and conversations nationwide.
Be sure to check out Erin’s LinkedIn, and her website Breaking Bread Village! As well as the article about her from the Midland Daily News!
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
329 Hello Fellow Storyteller
The art of telling stories is something that unites us, but it is also something that can tell us so much about the person after they tell their story, especially if the story is awkward or funny, or if it’s about another person.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Karen Eber discuss the art of storytelling and how there are opportunities to collect and tell stories everyday.
329 Hello Fellow Storyteller
The art of telling stories is something that unites us, but it is also something that can tell us so much about the person after they tell their story, especially if the story is awkward or funny, or if it’s about another person.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Karen Eber discuss the art of storytelling and how there are opportunities to collect and tell stories everyday.
Highlights
Awkward questions are unavoidable, one day you will look back on them fondly.
Actively listening to the people who are telling you their story.
If you want to learn about someone’s stories, ask questions.
Quotes
“That was my intro into storytelling that recognizing it’s not just a way to convey meaning or persuade, it’s a way to create connection, even change energy in what can be the most artificial of circumstances.”
“Through conversation we just uncover magical things.”
Mentioned in this podcast
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
What will you do today that you will pay attention to and build a story out of? Maybe you’re picking up kids from school while you’re listening to this, what are you experiencing as you are waiting for your kids to come out of the school? Maybe you’re on your way home from work, or maybe you’re going for a walk with your dog, what are you paying attention to that you could turn into a story that you could collect and share to connect with people in an authentic and personal way.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Karen
Karen Eber is an author, leadership consultant, and keynote speaker. Her TED Talk on how your brain responds to stories continues to inspire millions. Her book, The Perfect Story: How to Tell Stories That Inform, Influence, and Inspire, is a Porchlight Books Bestseller and was selected as a Next Big Ideas Club must-read. It was published with HarperCollins this October.
As the CEO and Chief Storyteller of Eber Leadership Group, Karen helps Fortune 500 companies like GE and Microsoft build leaders, teams, and culture, one story at a time. She guest lectures at universities including MIT, and Stanford. She is a former Head of Culture, Learning, and Leadership Development at GE and Deloitte. Karen frequently contributes and is featured in Fast Company, Quartz, Entrepreneur, MSN, Forbes, Inc, and Business Insider.
Be sure to check out Karen’s Instagram and LinkedIn! As well as her book and her website where you will find a free download of common storytelling mistakes!
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
244: How Does Storytelling Make You More Relatable and Inspiring?
In this episode Sarah Elkins and her guest, Greg McDonough, an accomplished entrepeneur and finance consultant, discuss the importance of telling one's story in a meaningful and relevant way so that it resonates with the audience in a way that can be both compelling and inspiring.
The Meaningfulness of Relevant Stories
In this episode Sarah Elkins and her guest, Greg McDonough, an accomplished entrepeneur and finance consultant, discuss the importance of telling one's story in a meaningful and relevant way so that it resonates with the audience in a way that can be both compelling and inspiring.
Highlights from the episode:
Your strengths are your stories.
Sharing somthing meaningful so that it is relevant.
People want to see that these stories are possible and achievable.
Quotes
It's not about your story, it's about how your audience receives it.
Be conscious of where you are in the moment and how the moment is going to reflect in your stories going forward.
Referenced in this podcast:
The Impactful Leadership podcast episode featuring Sarah Elkins
The Entrepreneurs' Organization website
From Greg's LinkedIn profile:
My passion is to help my clients balance the amount of sleep they have with the amount they EAT (earnings after-tax). We manage their risk-taking so they can sleep better at night while also managing their business to produce the after-tax cash flow they need. It is a tricky combination but through a team approach, we are able to achieve these goals together.
Connect with Greg on LinkedIn, subscribe to The Impactful Leadership podcast, and check out his website!
*Show notes contributed by Chinook Bromlie-Estey
About Sarah:
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
207: Want to Bring Out the Best In People? Listen to Them.
Listen, Ask Questions, Give Them An Answer
Have you ever had a job working for a difficult or mean boss? Or maybe you are a boss that struggles to connect with your employees? Thomas Jackson’s most memorable bosses are the ones who listened to his ideas and either implemented them or let them know why not.
Listen to Sarah Elkins and Thomas Jackson, as they discuss the difference between an encouraging leader and a negative one. In this episode, Sarah and Thomas dive into this topic and share the memorable moments, whether good or bad, from their work experiences and the long-term effects on workers. They also talk about the No Longer Virtual event, and how you can build your professional network face-to-face.
Join in to see how your work environment can change based on the attitudes of the people around you.
“The difference between a nice person showing up in different ways, versus a mean person showing up the same way.”
*podcast show notes contributed by Tracy Ackeret
About Thomas:
Thomas Jackson is a UPS Driver Helper and Belt Splitter.
He enjoys writing articles for his LinkedIn profile and has over 2,000+ articles on the platform.
Visit Thomas’ LinkedIn profile and don’t hesitate to dive into his collection of articles.
ABOUT SARAH:
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Episode 177: The Art of Caring Leadership: What Stories Do They Tell About You?
Heather Younger's book, The Art of Caring Leadership, offers 9 key aspects to consider, and a free assessment to quantify what appear to be qualifying character traits.
What I love about the book is that the expectation isn't for every leader to be caring in the same way. Heather knows that each of us must be true to ourselves in how we lead, while being self-reflective enough to know when we're getting in our own way, and making gradual, consistent adjustments when necessary.
Heather Younger Demonstrates Care In Everything She Does
How do you describe a caring leader?
Podcast cover art with image of Heather Younger
Heather Younger's book, The Art of Caring Leadership, offers 9 key aspects to consider, and a free assessment to quantify what appear to be qualifying character traits. And to make the book and assessment even more actionable, Heather has created a free community site for people to exchange ideas, ask questions, and share experiences.
What I love about the book is that the expectation isn't for every leader to be caring in the same way. Heather knows that each of us must be true to ourselves in how we lead, while being self-reflective enough to know when we're getting in our own way, and making gradual, consistent adjustments when necessary.
Our conversation might just be what you're looking for to get you thinking about what kind of leader you are, where you can improve, and why it matters.
Heather Younger, Author of The Art of Caring Leadership
Heather Younger is a best-selling author, international speaker, consultant, adjunct organizational leadership professor, and facilitator who has earned her reputation as “The Employee Whisperer.” Her experiences as an entrepreneur, manager, attorney, writer, coach, listener, speaker, collaborator, and mother all lend themselves to a laser-focused clarity into what makes employees of organizations and companies—large and small—tick.
ABOUT SARAH:
Elkins Consulting image of Sarah and book cover
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
Audiobook promo image
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home. The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Episode 166: Compare and Contrast Doesn't Always Mean Compete
How many times have you listened to a story and wanted to jump in, interrupt, to share a story of your own? Is it because you think your story is better, more meaningful or entertaining? Is it because you want to connect with the person and you know finding something in common is a good way to do that?
When I read a recent article by my friend Tom Dietzler, and he posed those questions in the context of a story he listened to, I was intrigued and reached out to ask him to chat about that on a podcast episode.
Your Story Matters, But Not More Than Someone Else's
Tom Dietzler quote and image.
How many times have you listened to a story and wanted to jump in, interrupt, to share a story of your own? Is it because you think your story is better, more meaningful or entertaining? Is it because you want to connect with the person and you know finding something in common is a good way to do that?
When I read a recent article by my friend Tom Dietzler, and he posed those questions in the context of a story he listened to, I was intrigued and reached out to ask him to chat about that on a podcast episode.
ON FIRES, HISTORY, AND JUST LISTENING … told the story about Tom's deep dive into a 4 part series hosted by Lindsay Graham (not the Senator) on the The Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
As he listened to the details of the beginning of the fire, and even into the second part of the series, Tom desperately wanted to interject, to remind the narrator that there was another fire with even more fatalities and larger footprint at the same time, just 250 miles north of Chicago, in Peshtigo, Wisconsin.
It took him a while to even realize he was doing this, but when he did, he had to take a step back to figure out why. And that's the reason I wanted to chat with him.
When we listen to a story, it's easy for our own similar or related stories to pop into our heads. But what do we miss when we are too busy thinking of what we'll say next to contribute to the conversation?
---
Tom Dietzler is a contributing writer for the award winning platform BizCatalyst 360. Connect with him on LinkedIn to receive notifications of his new posts!
---
Sarah & her dog, Toblerone on Mt. Helena, Helena, Montana
ABOUT SARAH:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Episode 148: Your Stories Don't Define You. How You Tell Them Will
This week’s episode of the podcast is a sneak peek of the audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will, to be released in mid-November. For a limited time, the ebook is just $0.99!
As a special bonus for listeners, the book will include two songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana. Keep an eye out for announcements through LinkedIn and via my Elkins Consulting Facebook & Instagram pages, or visit my website to learn more.
Sneak Peek of the Audiobook to be Released November 2020!
Hi, I’m Sarah Elkins, your host, and Chief Storymaker at Elkins Consulting.
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
This week’s episode of the podcast is a sneak peek of the audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will, to be released in mid-November. For a limited time, the ebook is just $0.99!
As a special bonus for listeners, the book will include two songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana. Keep an eye out for announcements through LinkedIn and via my Elkins Consulting Facebook & Instagram pages, or visit my website to learn more.