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The power of strategic narrative | Andy Raskin

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May 28, 2023

Guest

Andy Raskin

Andy Raskin, a narrative expert known for his work with clients like Gong and Salesforce, shares his insights on crafting powerful strategic narratives. He explains how these narratives can unify teams and resonate with customers, using Salesforce as a case study. Raskin introduces a five-step framework for creating engaging stories and emphasizes the importance of leadership in aligning narratives with company vision. He also discusses the shift in corporate training narratives and the emotional challenges teams face during this creative process.

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ANECDOTE

The Power of Story

Andy Raskin's initial investor pitch for his app received harsh criticism, including a rating of "1/10 (worst)".
After rewriting the pitch as a compelling story, based on screenwriting principles, he secured a term sheet.

insights

INSIGHT

Beyond Problem/Solution

Traditional pitches often resemble an "arrogant doctor" approach: problem, solution, comparison.
Raskin suggests focusing on the shift from the old way to a new way of doing things.

question_answer

ANECDOTE

Salesforce's Strategic Narrative

Salesforce didn't focus on being better CRM than Siebel.
Instead, they positioned the "cloud" as the new game, making "software" the old game.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

From Code to Story: The Consultant's Journey

04:21 • 25min

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Crafting Engaging Strategic Narratives

29:14 • 2min

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Transforming Corporate Training Narratives

31:29 • 9min

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Crafting Compelling Strategic Narratives

40:37 • 15min

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The Essential Role of Leadership in Shaping Product Narratives

55:28 • 2min

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Lightning Round: Books, Movies, and Banter

57:01 • 2min

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Enhancing Leadership Through Strategic Narrative and Presentation Skills

59:10 • 4min

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Out of Sheer Rage

Wrestling with D.H. Lawrence

Geoff Dyer

Out of Sheer Rage is a unique blend of memoir, travelogue, and literary musings. Geoff Dyer embarks on a journey to explore D.H. Lawrence's life and works, but the book becomes more about Dyer's own struggles with writer's block and his personal reflections on creativity and identity. Through his travels to places like Paris, Greece, Sicily, and Mexico, Dyer grapples with his own procrastination and indecision, using Lawrence as a lens to examine his own life and writing process.

The hero with a thousand faces

Joseph Campbell

In this book, Joseph Campbell explores his theory of the 'monomyth', a universal pattern found in the mythological narratives of various cultures. He details the stages of the 'hero's journey', which include departure from the ordinary world, initiation into a supernatural world, and return with a boon. Campbell draws on a wide range of mythological sources and integrates insights from psychology, particularly from Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud, to illustrate the common elements of heroic myths across different cultures.

Story

Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting

Robert McKee

In *Story*, Robert McKee provides a detailed and integrated explanation of the craft of writing for the screen. The book expands on the concepts he teaches in his highly regarded seminars, offering insights into the relationship between structure and character, and the underlying principles that make a story compelling. McKee draws from a wide range of sources, including Aristotle and classic films, to offer practical advice on storytelling that is applicable to screenwriters, novelists, playwrights, and non-fiction writers.

Brought to you by Coda—Meet the evolution of docs | Lenny’s Job Board—Hire the best product people. Find the best product gigs | Eco—Your most rewarding app

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Andy Raskin helps CEOs align their leadership teams around a strategic narrative—a single story that powers success in sales, marketing, product, fundraising, and recruiting. His clients include Gong, Dropbox, Uber, Salesforce, Square, and IBM. In today’s episode, we discuss:

• What a strategic narrative is, and how to craft one

• How having a strategic narrative can bring alignment to your entire company

• Examples of strategic narratives in action

• Who needs a strategic narrative and who doesn’t

• Why Andy thinks about movements instead of categories

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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-power-of-strategic-narrative

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Where to find Andy Raskin:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyraskin/

• Website: https://www.andyraskin.com/

• Podcast: https://andyraskin.com/podcast/

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Andy’s background

(08:03) What is a strategic narrative?

(10:34) How Salesforce would have pitched the old way

(12:02) Examples of a strategic narrative in action

(15:23) How one piece of writing skyrocketed Andy’s career

(16:40) The power of writing online

(17:53) Two paths to writing online

(19:27) Naming the old game

(20:59) Naming the stakes

(23:29) Naming the objective

(25:17) Naming the obstacles

(26:35) Overcoming the obstacles

(26:57) How the strategic narrative parallels the hero’s journey

(28:25) Telling one story well vs. being a good storyteller

(29:18) The 5-step framework summarized

(31:33) An example of the 5-step framework in action

(36:12) The impact of shifting to the strategic narrative approach

(39:08) Companies that are nailing their strategic narrative

(40:36) Why Andy thinks about movements instead of categories

(44:15) Should every company have a strategic narrative?

(46:33) Signs that something is broken in your strategic narrative

(48:53) Steps to get started on your own

(51:36) How to reach Andy

(51:53) Why the second session is the low point in the process

(55:30) Why the CEO needs to be part of the process

(57:40) Lightning round

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Referenced:

• Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com/

• Marc Benioff: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbenioff/

• Zuora: https://www.zuora.com/

• The Greatest Sales Deck I’ve Ever Seen: https://medium.com/the-mission/the-greatest-sales-deck-ive-ever-seen-4f4ef3391ba0

• Gong: https://www.gong.io/

• Tien Tzuo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tientzuo/

• Want a Better Pitch? Master the “Move”: https://medium.com/firm-narrative/want-a-better-pitch-master-the-move-5fbee071ca7f

• Star Wars: https://www.starwars.com/

• The Hero with a Thousand Faces: https://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Faces-Collected-Joseph-Campbell/dp/1577315936

• 360Learning: https://360learning.com/

• Nick Hernandez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicoconut/

• Amit Bendov: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amitbendov/

• Drift: https://www.drift.com/

• OneTrust: https://www.onetrust.com/

• “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott: https://learning.hccs.edu/faculty/pamela.golden/engl2327/shitty-first-drafts-by-anne-lamott/view

• Story: https://www.amazon.com/Story-Substance-Structure-Principles-Screenwriting/

• Out of Sheer Rage: https://www.amazon.com/Out-Sheer-Rage-Wrestling-Lawrence/

• Station Eleven: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10574236/

• Fitbit: https://www.fitbit.com/global/us/home

• Apple Watch: https://www.apple.com/watch

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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.

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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

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