All posts by Adam Lowery

06-Building a case, 07c-Telling stories

FILM CRITIC HULK: Screenwriting 101 (The Art of Story-Telling)

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FILM CRITIC HULK is a unique writer who uses all caps and “Hulk speak” to analyze movies, filmmaking and the way we consume movies. He allegedly works in the film industry with his real name, and he uses the comic book influenced pseudonym for all of his critical writing. He put together a book length treatise on the art of screenwriting that offers keen insight on story telling in general. Beware, getting past the CAPS LOCK WALL takes some practice.

Instead of giving a book report, recapping all of Hulk’s points, I’d like to highlight a few points that are clearly applicable to story-telling outside of the screenplay medium.  The full post has seven parts:

  1. What is a Story?
  2. Where to Find Inspiration?
  3. 6 General Stuffs You Need to Know Beforehand
  4. How to Tell a Story – Conceptually
  5. How to Tell a Story – Structurally
  6. How to Tell a Story – Screenplay-Specific Instruction
  7. Now Here Comes the Hard Part

Hulk points out that, ” A GOOD NARRATIVE IS COMPELLING TO THE AUDIENCE, ECONOMICALLY TOLD, FEELS REAL EITHER IN TERMS OF EMOTION, DETAIL, OR TEXTURE, AND SPEAKS TO SOME THEMATIC TRUTH THAT YOU RECOGNIZE IN YOURSELF OR THE WORLD AT LARGE.” In the business world, this translates to making sure your audience is engaged in your subject and explaining it in a way with which the audience can identify. We all need to make persuasive arguments in the office, often to diverse audiences. The narrative that wins over a colleague to your point of view may not speak to your boss in the same way.

Hulk also points out that the most important force in telling a story is empathy. This is especially true when making a persuasive argument to a coworker over who you have no direct authority. Framing an argument as a story that the other party can relate to goes a long way toward getting your point across.

Hulk repeatedly derides constrictive structural rules when telling a story. Professors Noonan and Smith have mentioned the same point in regards to presentations. We covered the basic structure that would make a successful slide deck, but it’s important to bend the guidelines if it adds to the story or presentation.

I highly recommend all of Hulk’s writing, although it can get pretty long winded. Now I’ll just leave this right here:

03-Planning the work of a team, 04-Managing a project team, 99-Applying business intelligence

Career Rocket Fuel in Three Stages

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http://www.fastcocreate.com/3027499/career-rocket-fuel-whether-youre-a-millennial-or-eyeing-retirement-heres-what-you-really-nee?utm_source=facebook

Recently, my boss shared this thoughtful article on career planning. Despite the unwieldy title, “Career Rocket Fuel: Whether You’re A Millennial Or Eyeing Retirement, Here’s What You Really Need To Get Right About Work,” it opened my eyes to a longer view of what constitutes a career.

The key takeaway for me is the thought of pacing. Author Brian Fetherstonhaugh suggests thinking of a career as a three stage process, with each stage spanning roughly 15 years. These days, people don’t stay with one company for their entire career. The article points out that it isn’t necessary to remain in one place if you have the structure to build toward something.

Stage One is a time to acquire valuable skills and experiences that are transportable to all types of work. These are the skills we are working on this summer—problem solving, communication, working with teams, reasoned decision making—not purely technical skills. Another goal in this stage is to build enduring relationships with people on all sides of us. Stage One is a time to figure out what you find interesting and what you could devote future years pursuing.

Stage Two is a time to focus in on the interests and hone the skills discovered in Stage One. It’s a time to elevate those skills to a level that differentiates you from the rest of the field. This is the time to take the skills with which have the most proficiency and become most proficient in your department, company, industry, etc.

Stage Three was the most revolutionary part of this article for me. This is a time to mentor the next generation and pass along the wisdom (hopefully) earned over a nearly full career. Thinking of coworkers in this stage made me realize how much value there is to gain by listening to people near the end of a successful career.

This article concludes with an interesting breakdown of how you might invest your time in each career stage if you wanted to optimize your return in each segment.