Q4 2023

Proven narrative methods to up-level your executive influence whether you're an introvert, maverick, or technical expert

Michael Margolis

Trusted advisor, global keynoter, best-selling author

Influence at Scale for VP & Dir-Level Leaders

Google

Facebook

Shopify

Atlassian

Walmart

Influence at Scale unlocks your ability to get investment, buy-in, and alignment. This is a highly-immersive, learn-by-doing storytelling sprint. First, you'll select a high-value project: a strategic priority or OKR for practical application and measurable ROI. Next, you’ll shape and refine a compelling narrative to accelerate the project's velocity. Finally, you’ll enhance your power, people, and persuasion skills to execute and drive the narrative forward. The more complex and technical your work the better. Including AI, DeFi, healthtech, product growth, agile, data governance, or any other disruptive technology or transformation. Designed to get you immediate traction, this exclusive community accelerates your career into an executive role, positioning you as a leader people respect, listen to, and put trust in your decisions. 6-week sprint. Weekly working sessions via Zoom, with individualized real-time feedback from Michael and your cohort peers. You'll also get private 1-on-1 coaching with a Storied coach, plus extended Office Hours thru Q2 to ensure your successful implementation. You'll join an elite group of leaders with alumni from companies like Meta, Google, Mozilla, Microsoft, Salesforce, Cruise, Yelp, Nielsen, Discovery+, Accenture, Genentech, Bain Capital, and venture-backed startups. While storytelling tips and tricks are helpful, they’re not enough to navigate the rapid pace of change and complexity. This program is different. Develop the mindset, skillsets, and capabilities for serious growth in your role and impact. If you put in the reps, we guarantee results or your money back. WHAT YOU WILL ACHIEVE&nbsp;⛰️1. Build and ship a narrative that gets you investment, buy-in, and agreement with executives2. Leave with a playbook of 20+ narrative methods &amp; tools that you've learned and will use on the daily3. Unlock the self-limiting beliefs and self-sabotaging behaviors that stand in your way4. Build a peer community that offers quality non-judgmental feedback unlike anywhere else WHAT YOU WILL LEARN– How to get instant buy-in for your ideas– How to demonstrate rigorous thinking– How to turn complex data into a story– How to reduce friction in rapid communications– How to manage up, down, and across– How to stand out and have your voice heard– How to build trust with difficult stakeholders– How to prepare for an executive presentation– How to win at the game of “memo culture”– How to overcome imposter syndrome WHY NARRATIVE ✨– We live in the era of data and information overload– But the data never speaks for itself– Those who can make sense of the story influence and drive complex decisions– Narrative is not just ‘a soft-skill’ or a ‘nice to have– It's a core capability of leadership– It’s what you need if you’re trying to get buy-in, investment, or shared action on&nbsp;anything– It’s&nbsp;#1 competency&nbsp;required&nbsp;to advance to a C-suite, VP, or Director role ABOUT THE METHODSYou’ll get access to Narrative Intelligence™, our advisory and training solution. You'll benefit from more than 20,000 hours of testing and validating these methods inside 350+ leading organizations. I've been a long-time advisor to executives and teams in Silicon Valley,&nbsp;influencing more than $13B in strategic investments&nbsp;inside Meta, Google, Salesforce, Genentech, Uber, and venture-backed startups. This includes more than a 10 product teams at Meta like Newsfeed, Monetization, Messenger on H1/H2 reviews with Mark Zuckerberg. I also deliver 30-40 storytelling training sessions a year to product builders and GTM teams across the worlds of tech, finance, healthcare, etc. If you work in a "highly-matrixed" environment, you'll find this to be a high-value approach for unlocking the intangibles that get you executive buy-in, investment, and agreement.

"Narrative" is the #1 competency required to advance to a C-suite or VP role

You have a new role or strategy to deliver onYet the value and complexity of what you're working on isn't properly understood by execs

You feel caught in the messy middleYou've been told to work on your influencing skills but you're not sure what to do to "level-up"

You have responsibility, without authorityYou need to drive velocity/results but it requires buy-in from unaligned stakeholders

This is designed for VP/Dir+ leaders:

5 Pillars of the Influence Stack

<ul><li>Make a persuasive business case that gets little resistance or push back</li><li>Be perceived as a rigorous thinker that speaks like an executive</li><li>Get investment, alignment, and headcount for your strategic priorities</li></ul>

How to Win with Your CEO, Win in the Board Room, Win with XFN

<ul><li>Accelerate your ability to write, speak, and present persuasively</li><li>Build a reputation for solving ambiguous problem spaces</li><li>Overcome the invisible blockers that sabotage your message</li></ul>

How to Get Instant Buy-in for Your Ideas

<ul><li>Demystify technical and hard to explain things people don't understand</li><li>Zoom out and frame the big picture for high-signal relevance</li><li>Turn chaos into coherence that builds confidence with others</li></ul>

How to Turn Complex Data Into a Story

<ul><li>Understand the motivations and needs of any audience</li><li>Remove unconscious triggers that make stakeholders defensive</li><li>Build a reputation for solving ownerless and ambiguous problems</li></ul>

How to Built Trust with Difficult Stakeholders

<ul><li>Discover and apply your influence archetype (not everyone's is the same)</li><li>Unlock the 3 levers of influence: clarity, confidence, and conviction</li><li>Find your voice and be taken seriously, without having all the answers</li></ul>

How to Overcome the Inner Blockers That Stand in Your Way

<ul><li>Intro to Aristotle's 3 Proofs of Rhetoric: for disruption</li><li>Clarify your goals and intentions for this course</li><li>Leveraging your back story, passion, and curiosity</li><li>Developing a POV as source of confidence and power</li><li>Exercise A: TLDR: Frame the Business Case</li><li>Exercise B: Claim Your Confidence: Superhero Origins</li></ul>

Session 1: Influence Without Authority

<ul><li>Step 1 of SFB Narrative Method: See it: Name the Change</li><li>Learn rhetorical framing techniques for managing change</li><li>Create big picture clarity amidst thrash, chaos, confusion</li><li>Reframe problems into possibilities that get others unstuck</li><li>Exercise A: Define the Mission: From/To Contrast Frame</li><li>Exercise B: Reframe problems into opportunity statements</li></ul>

Session 2: Context for 
Change (Ethos)

<ul><li>Step 2 of SFB Narrative Method: Feel it: Emotional Dilemma</li><li>Strengthen the ability to humanize your product/initiative</li><li>Highlight what’s at stake and why this matters</li><li>Strengthen XFN collaboration via empathy for others needs</li><li>Exercise A: Stakeholder Matrix/XFN Needs</li><li>Exercise B: User Stories - Key storytelling techniques</li></ul>

Session 3: Empathy and Stakes (Pathos)

<ul><li>Step 3 of SFB Narrative Method: Believe it: Evidence of Truth</li><li>Present the solution, recommendations, validation</li><li>Demonstrate proof of a reasonable path/resolution</li><li>Address unknowns and neutralize potential resistance</li><li>Exercise A: Choose from 15 sources of evidence</li><li>Exercise B: Remove the exits (anticipating objections)</li></ul>

Session 4: Data & Evidence (Logos)

<ul><li>Cultivate your clarity, compassion, and conviction</li><li>Practice delivery in conversational manner</li><li>Structure your thinking in visual and written format</li><li>Get real-time feedback on the final pitch</li><li>Exercise A: Storyboarding</li><li>Exercise B: 1-Page Narrative</li></ul>

Session 5: Practice the Pitch

5 sessions + downloadable tools and templates
 

Why narrative is the #1 skill to accelerate your career as a tech leader

Senior Dir of Product & Engineering, Code & Theory

Principal, Global Security, Cruise (subsidiary of GM)

Chief Storyteller, Google X, The Moonshot Factory

What our alumni are saying

A few quick alumni success stories

The power of Narrative Intelligence ™ 

Tested and validated by 350+ organizations

Fancy Intro Video / Story 10x Book Launch 🚀

<ul><li>An intimate cohort of 12-20 VP/Dir level+ leaders in tech</li><li>Weekly 2-hour Zoom sessions (1 pm - 3pm PT / 4pm - 6pm ET)</li><li>All sessions are recorded, but best to experience live</li><li>Immersive breakouts, with peer to peer feedback</li><li>Action-driven, practical assignments (1-2 hours/week)</li></ul>

High Touch, Learn by Doing

<ul><li>Two 1-on-1 private coaching sessions with your Storied coach</li><li>Influence Archetype Assessment to unlock your superpowers</li><li>Office Hours for additional laser coaching with Michael</li><li>Community forums for async input and feedback</li></ul>

Power Skills, Persuasion Skills, People Skills

<ul><li>Weekly Office Hours for live practice presentations and feedback</li><li>Bonus modules on affective presence, authority stacking, and more</li><li>Group accountability to ship your narrative and get ROI</li></ul>

Office Hours: Deep Dive Presentations

The structure: how it works

"Those who tell the stories rule the world." - Plato

High-touch, peer to peer, learn by doing

Active hands-on learning

You’ll be interacting with others through breakout rooms and home pod teams

Interactive and project-based

Join a community of like-minded people who want to learn and grow alongside you

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