First Time Facilitator How to get your groups to spot (and share) their stories with David Pullan (Episode 169)
Today, you’ll hear from a guest with tremendous presence (and a matching tremendous voice!).
We all know stories are important, but what’s the best way of eliciting those stories from our workshop participants?
My guest today is David Pullan, co-founder of The Story Spotters. In this conversation, David shares pragmatic details on questions and x-factor activities we can use in our next workshop, using the Story Spotter framework.
He also shares a reassuring phrase we can use as facilitators, to help us relax a little bit (I’m looking at myself here!!).
David is a fine example of someone who is excellent at building relationships, and he also shares his ideas on how facilitators make THE best facilitators. I never thought of it that way!
David Pullan is the founder of The Story Spotters where he helps leaders and teams use the power of story to build powerful connections one conversation at a time. We dive into the 4 elements of story spotting in this show.
He has extensive experience in helping clients sharpen their spoken communications. He specialises in business development communication and key internal presentations, helping clients to unlock the complexity of messages that need to stick with their target audiences.
David has been coaching senior leaders since 2005. Working in some of the world’s top organisations and SMEs, he helps clients adapt their communications for different settings from Board and Executive committee sessions, to town hall meetings and video conferences.
David was a professional actor for 20 years with the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre, BBC and Paramount Pictures. He continues to work both as a broadcast voice-over artist and conference host, both of which keep his own communications skills at the sharp end.
In this episode you will learn:
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The stories that you need to spot, shape and share stories: Listen to David share his valuable story-spotting framework
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How to make your workshops the best experience for all involved
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Some refreshing advice for first time facilitators
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How to connect people’s ideas to concepts and key messages
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How to extend the life of your voice, using the UFO technique
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What keeps David motivated as a business owner
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Join The Flipchart Facebook Group
- Click here for show notes
- Connect with David Pullan on LinkedIn
Every day in 2025, Leanne is podcasting on her new show, Leanne on Demand.
Tune in over here!
(Otherwise, enjoy the back catalogue of First Time Facilitator episodes).