Design Storytelling: Turn Resistance into Buy-in

New
·

4 Weeks

·

Cohort-based Course

Learn to create story-driven presentations that persuade stakeholders and unify teams. Adopt a proven workflow to shape your vision.

Previously at

Google
Dropbox
Square
Salesforce

Course overview

Overcome Resistance: Master Storytelling to Drive Design Success

Does this sound familiar?

• You’ve pitched promising design solutions that never gain traction.

• Teams remain siloed, missing the bigger picture behind your vision.

• Stakeholders nod, but don’t fully commit to supporting your ideas.

• Organizational resistance and skepticism block even your best concepts.


It doesn’t have to be this way.


Now imagine if you could:

• Present your product vision in a compelling way that gets buy-in from every stakeholder.

• Tailor your narrative to each audience, anticipating objections and earning support.

• Utilize a proven workflow that takes your ideas from messy text to a structured, story-driven presentation.

• Move beyond just designing aesthetics and turn your presentations into powerful persuasion tools that inspire action.



How You’ll Learn

This live, hands-on course is not about theory. It's about how to do storytelling. In four weeks, you'll go beyond just learning the importance of storytelling and instead actively apply it to your work. You'll be guided through exercises and receive personalized feedback as you build tools to make an immediate impact: stakeholder maps, structured story frameworks, storyboarding templates, and more. By the end of the course, you'll have the confidence and skill to create story-driven presentations that will resonate with your teams, influence decision-makers, and spark lasting action.

Who is this course for

01

You’re a mid-career designer whose ideas often face resistance, ready to learn how to effectively push your vision forward.


02

You’re frustrated by organizational silos that stall your projects, seeking strategies to unify teams and accelerate progress.

03

You struggle to clearly convey your product vision, wanting to master storytelling to make your ideas compelling and heard.


What you’ll get out of this course

Craft a Reusable Narrative Framework

  • Develop: A personal storytelling template to turn raw concepts into compelling narratives.
  • Apply: Reuse this framework for multiple projects, ensuring consistent, impactful messaging.

Tailor Your Vision to Diverse Stakeholders

  • Identify: Map key players and understand their motivations so you can tailor your narrative effectively.
  • Adapt: Adjust your story based on your audiences' concerns, ensuring that each group sees the value in your proposal.

Build a Cohesive Storyboard for Structural Clarity

  • Process: Use a low-fidelity storyboard to arrange your ideas and structure your presentation.
  • Refine: Build a framework that ensures every idea flows logically, and your message is clear before you start working on high-fidelity visuals.

Adopt a Proven Workflow for Story-Based Presentations

  • Text & Structure First: Focus on content and structure before jumping to visuals, ensuring your narrative becomes clear through an iterative process.
  • Visual Refinement: Start integrating simple graphics that support your story rather than overwhelm it, based on your storyboard.

Overcome Organizational Resistance

  • Strategize: Anticipate objections and plan responses.
  • Implement: Unite cross-functional teams around a shared vision using your newly developed assets and storytelling approach.


This course includes

9 interactive live sessions

Lifetime access to course materials

11 in-depth lessons

Direct access to instructor

4 projects to apply learnings

Guided feedback & reflection

Private community of peers

Course certificate upon completion

Maven Satisfaction Guarantee

This course is backed by Maven’s guarantee. You can receive a full refund within 14 days after the course ends, provided you meet the completion criteria in our refund policy.

Course syllabus

Week 1

Feb 17—Feb 23

    Feb

    18

    Foundations of Story-Driven Vision Presentations

    Tue 2/186:00 PM—7:30 PM (UTC)

    Establishing Your Narrative Framework

    3 items

    Feb

    20

    Design Critique

    Thu 2/206:00 PM—7:00 PM (UTC)

Week 2

Feb 24—Mar 2

    Feb

    25

    Mapping Stakeholders & Motivations

    Tue 2/256:00 PM—7:30 PM (UTC)

    Audience & Stakeholder Alignment

    3 items

    Feb

    27

    Design Critique

    Thu 2/276:00 PM—7:00 PM (UTC)

Week 3

Mar 3—Mar 9

    Mar

    4

    Storyboarding Your Flow

    Tue 3/46:00 PM—7:30 PM (UTC)

    Structuring Your Presentation

    3 items

    Mar

    6

    Design Critique

    Thu 3/66:00 PM—7:00 PM (UTC)

Week 4

Mar 10—Mar 16

    Mar

    11

    From Storyboard to Polished Delivery

    Tue 3/115:00 PM—6:30 PM (UTC)

    Visual Refinement & Rhetorical Delivery

    4 items

    Mar

    13

    Design Critique

    Thu 3/135:00 PM—6:00 PM (UTC)

Post-course

    Mar

    25

    Optional: Q&A

    Tue 3/255:00 PM—6:00 PM (UTC)
    Optional

Bonus

    Additional Resources

    2 items
A pattern of wavy dots

Join an upcoming cohort

Design Storytelling: Turn Resistance into Buy-in

Cohort 1

$799

Dates

Feb 17—Mar 16, 2025

Payment Deadline

Feb 16, 2025
Get reimbursed

Meet your instructor

Chris Abad

Chris Abad

Design executive with 20+ years mentoring hundreds of designers worldwide

With 20+ years leading design teams at top companies like Google, Dropbox, Square, and Salesforce, I’ve seen firsthand how a well-structured, story-focused presentation can move ideas from concept to consensus. I’ve helped hundreds of designers move beyond basic “confidence” tips—showing them how a text-first approach, careful narrative structuring, and thoughtful visual design produce presentations that truly persuade. By sharing this proven workflow, I’ll empower you to build presentations that resonate with stakeholders, foster alignment, and elevate your influence as a designer.

Frequently Asked Questions

What people are saying

        Chris has helped me improve my ability to influence cross-functional partners and leaders, establish a stronger executive presence, and navigate difficult partnerships. I appreciate the way Chris listens, refrains from judgement, coaches through story-telling and openly brainstorms effective ways to overcome obstacles I may be facing.
Nisha Desai

Nisha Desai

UX Manager at Google
        Chris brought fresh ideas to storytelling (still remember the 'ELU - Eyes Light Up Moments' inclusion suggestion to drive impact in my second project for our users and partners). 
Soumya Sahu

Soumya Sahu

Senior UX Researcher at Google
        Chris was a great mentor to me, meeting iteratively to discuss writing strategy, approach to career growth, and actionable recommendations. I appreciated his compassion and candor in equal measure in review of leadership presentations, helping me hone my message and convey our significant efforts better to leadership.
Jerry Gordinier

Jerry Gordinier

Senior UX Manager at Google
        Chris is a seasoned design leader with a profound sensibility for strategy. His constant focus on clarity, coupled with his ability to craft powerful narratives anchored in a deep understanding of the business, makes him an invaluable leader.
Kevin Tunc

Kevin Tunc

Designer at OpenAI
        I've been impressed with Chris's contribution to our product strategy, also his ability to turn strategy into a compelling narrative and then delivering that narrative through visual storytelling. I think telling a clear, compelling story as a way to activate your strategy is an increasingly valuable skill—and Chris brings that.
George Baier IV

George Baier IV

Senior Director at Dropbox
        Chris’ ability to communicate product vision and strategy was instrumental and I learned a lot from working with him. The positive impact that Chris has had on our product and company will be seen for years to come.
Paul Hepworth

Paul Hepworth

VP of Engineering at UserTesting
A pattern of wavy dots

Join an upcoming cohort

Design Storytelling: Turn Resistance into Buy-in

Cohort 1

$799

Dates

Feb 17—Mar 16, 2025

Payment Deadline

Feb 16, 2025
Get reimbursed

$799

4 Weeks