"No matter what industry you work in. No matter where you are on the corporate ladder. Perhaps a different lens to tell our stories, market our brands, and lead our organizations is through the lens of the prophet. We are prophets of a future not our own.If we get this perspective right...We get our story right."
Eric Brown, co-founder and Chief Creative Officer at Whiteboard, an award-winning creative agency that specializes in organizational storytelling through branding and digital media, offered this invitation to attendees of our Media, Marketing & Storytelling event in 2015.
Brown opened his talk with an honest confession about the challenges many marketers face:
"The creative industry can be manipulative, over-saturated, and distracted. As a result, most of us have become cynics--we anticipate that the next person will have ulterior motives and that the next marketing tactic won't deliver. I'm learning though, that there's a wide chasm between discernment and cynicism. Working in the creative industry I've learned that belief is not a commodity, it's a skill. And belief is where every story begins."
As you watch the video, consider the following questions:
- Eric quotes Walter Brueggemann, who describes creatives as modern-day prophets. How can those in media and marketing have a prophetic influence in our world today?
- Brown refers the work of marketers and storytellers as the "ministry of imagination." How could your creative gifts help individuals, organizations, and communities flourish?
- Which of the 5 principles described in this presentation are most relevant to your work?
