Cindy Yerkey, of Jacobs, sees the benefits of storytelling. On behalf of their ACE Employee Network, Cindy used a blog to tell her story in celebration of World MS (Multiple Sclerosis) Day. ACE, which stands for ‘Access, Empower, Connect’ is Jacobs’ network focused on supporting and advocating for disabled employees, caregivers, and allies. The blog featured Cindy and two of her colleagues at Jacobs, who each shared their own experiences in living with MS with Jacobs’ employees. Cindy has shared her blog with PurpleSpace, in which she talks about the challenges and benefits of storytelling.
“Shifting culture requires us to change the cultural norms under which we operate, and embrace something new, with the intention of evolving culture in a positive way. Change can be seen to be difficult, or often opposed, when people don’t understand an issue or why change is needed. We sometimes fear the unknown. Storytelling can break through these roadblocks and be an avenue for sharing knowledge and information in a way that builds interest and understanding. It is a powerful tool to inform and educate others about new topics in a comfortable manner and creates a safe space for questions to be explored. It also helps establish the personal side to an initiative that can’t be otherwise conveyed with facts and statistics alone, creating empathy.
Storytelling, especially when talking about things that are of a personal nature and have a lot of emotion attached, can be scary. In my situation it meant I had to open up and share personal details about my disability. I had to allow myself to be vulnerable and to share some very intimate and personal experiences about my life and my health situation. Doing something like that requires a lot of courage and telling your story can be intimidating. Whether intentional or not, people sometimes react in a way that you don’t expect or may say things that are insensitive. I’ve had to revisit experiences that haven’t been pleasant and which brought out strong emotions; I had to be prepared to face those situations.
Storytelling really is a learning process and evolves. Early on, I started small by sharing my story with my family, closest friends, and colleagues. Practicing in a safe setting such as this, can help as you refine your approach and story. By starting out this way, I was able to learn how to respond to feedback as I sorted through my own emotions and could practice communicating with an audience with which I felt comfortable. Additionally, an important aspect of telling a story is to craft the narrative so that your audience relates to your story and feels comfortable, in either sharing their experiences in return and/or asking questions. Being flexible with an approach that is adaptable and fits differing audiences increases the chance that your message is effective and understood. “
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