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The Storytelling Lab

The Storytelling Lab

By: Rain Bennett
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Summary

 The Storytelling Lab covers everything you need to know about personal and professional stories to leverage their power to deepen your connections, increase your sales + donations, and serve your audiences better with real-life examples and experts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rain Bennett Art Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • How a Narrative Operating System Solves the Product Problem That Kills Every Brand

    How a Narrative Operating System Solves the Product Problem That Kills Every Brand
    Apr 30 2026
    "Your product is not the features, the specs, it's not what you ship. The product is the experience, the transformation that your customer goes through. It's the change in their lives. That's what you're selling." — Rain BennettYou can have a bold vision, a clear mission, and a brand people believe in... and still fail. Because none of it matters if your product doesn't deliver. In this solo episode, Rain breaks down the fourth layer of the Narrative Operating System: Product, the moment where your story is either proven or broken. Using Nike's grassroots origins and screenwriting software Highland Pro as case studies, Rain shows how the best brands don't build products for their customers—they build them with them. He also introduces the Hub and Spoke Model as a practical framework for keeping every feature and offering tied back to your core brand narrative, and walks through the most common product traps (feature bloat, trend chasing, and data misreading) that cause brands to drift and fracture over time.In this episode, you will learn to:Reframe your product as the moment your brand story is proven, or exposedUse the Hub and Spoke Model to keep every product feature tied to your core narrativeBuild with your customers instead of for them by treating listening as a storytelling strategyUnderstand where the Chief Storytelling Officer sits in the product conversation and why it mattersAvoid the three biggest product traps: feature bloat, trend chasing, and misreading data without contextEpisodes Referenced:EP 216 → Vision: The Big Future Story (https://www.thestorytellinglabpodcast.com/items/the-real-reason-your-brand-feels-disconnected)EP 220 → Mission: How You're Going to Get There (https://www.thestorytellinglabpodcast.com/items/%E2%80%9Cvision-is-what-inspires-your-people.-mission-is-what-activates-and-organizes-them.%E2%80%9D)EP 225 → Brand: How It Feels to Be Part of Your Story World (https://www.thestorytellinglabpodcast.com/items/the-real-brand-difference)Guest Referenced → Nelson Farris, first Chief Storytelling Officer at NikeGuest Referenced → John August, screenwriter and founder of Highland ProPodcast Referenced → Scriptnotes with John August and Craig MazinSoftware Referenced → Highland Pro → https://www.highland.appBook → The Chief Storytelling Officer by Rain Bennett → Coming August 25th (https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-chief-storytelling-officer-b-rain-bennett/1149080177?ean=9781636988115)Substack → Subscribe for more NOS content → https://rainbennett.substack.comFor more storytelling tips and strategies, visit:Website → https://rainbennett.comPodcast → https://thestorytellinglabpodcast.comOr follow along at:TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@chiefstorytellingofficerTwitter/X → https://twitter.com/rainbennettInstagram → https://www.instagram.com/rainbennettFacebook → https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellinglabYouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@RainBennett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    25 mins
  • The Story Advantage and Why Nobody Has the Same One as You with Bill Blankschaen

    The Story Advantage and Why Nobody Has the Same One as You with Bill Blankschaen
    Apr 22 2026
    "CQ — the character quotient — is who you are at the core of your values, and how consistently people can trust you to be that person. That to me is the exponential topper." — Bill Blankschaen


    Every person has a story no one else has. The problem is most people either don't know how to tell it or don't believe it's worth telling.


    Bill Blankschaen, author of Your Story Advantage and founder of StoryBuilders, has spent over a decade helping thought leaders (from John Maxwell to Lewis Howes)nfind their story, shape it, and use it to grow their impact, influence, and income.


    In this episode, Bill breaks down the Story Multiplier Formula, the five traps that keep people from ever telling their story, and why the structure he teaches doesn't constrain you, but actually sets you free to be more creative and more effective. He also walks through IQ, EQ, and the often-overlooked "CQ," and why that last one is the only variable that's entirely your choice.


    If you've got a message inside you that you haven't figured out how to get out, this is your episode.


    In this episode, you will learn to:

    • Apply the Story Multiplier Formula to turn who you are into measurable impact, influence, and income
    • Identify and break out of the confidence trap, the chaos trap, and the other story blocks holding you back
    • Understand the difference between IQ, EQ, and CQ—and why character is the only one you fully control
    • Build a story ecosystem with a clear message, a multiplier like a book, and a path to monetization
    • Edit your story for your audience, not yourself, because your story is about you but it was never for you


    Follow Bill Blankschaen:

    Website → https://billblankschaen.com/

    Free Resources → https://www.yourstoryadvantage.com/free-resources

    Book → Your Story Advantage by Bill Blankschaen: https://amzn.to/4vPjudW

    Company → Story Builders → https://mystorybuilders.com/


    Book Referenced → Never Quit by Glenn Cunningham (https://amzn.to/4tsDFNe)

    People Referenced → John Maxwell, Lewis Howes, Dean Graziosi, Jason Wilson, Stephen Covey, Hugh Hewitt


    And for more storytelling tips and strategies, visit:

    Website → https://rainbennett.com

    Podcast → https://thestorytellinglabpodcast.com


    Or follow along at:

    TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@chiefstorytellingofficer

    Twitter/X → https://twitter.com/rainbennett

    Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/rainbennett

    Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellinglab

    YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@RainBennett


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    49 mins
  • How the Generosity of Scars Makes Your Story More Powerful with Scott Mann

    How the Generosity of Scars Makes Your Story More Powerful with Scott Mann
    Apr 14 2026
    "I wasn't processing and dealing with my own stuff. Somehow I made my way back to storytelling. And that was really, if I could point to two things—my wife and story—those pulled me out." — Ret. Lt. Col. Scott MannScott Mann spent nearly two decades as a Green Beret, but the most powerful weapon he ever wielded was his story.In this episode, Scott breaks down rooftop leadership, the concept he coined in Afghanistan after watching storytelling and human connection turn frightened villagers into fighters. What he learned on those rooftops became the foundation for everything he now teaches about leadership, trust, and the courage to be relatable.After leaving the military, Scott hit rock bottom, standing in his closet holding a pistol, lost and without purpose. Storytelling pulled him out.Now he's an author, playwright, and the founder of a nonprofit helping veterans and first responders find their voice. His book The Generosity of Scars and his one-man shows Last Out and 11 Days are taking that message across the country and onto stages where veterans and civilians sit side by side and finally make sense of things together.If you've ever wondered whether your story is worth telling, Scott Mann's answer is clear: it was never about you in the first place.In this episode, you will learn to:Use storytelling as a trust-building tool in any high-stakes, low-trust environmentDistinguish between vulnerability for its own sake and relatability as an intentional, powerful communication strategyUnderstand what "autobiographical listening" means and why it explains how stories move people to actionOwn your story rather than let it own you by working through it in the service of othersRecognize that your scars are not your wounds—they are your most generous gift to the people who need to hear themFollow Scott Mann: Website → https://www.scottmann.comInstagram → https://www.instagram.com/greenberetscottmannBooks → The Generosity of Scars (out May 12th) and Operation Pineapple Express by Scott MannPlays → Last Out: Elegy of a Green Beret and 11 Days: The Story of Operation Pineapple ExpressNonprofit → Task Force PineappleProgram → Take the Mic (storytelling coaching)People Referenced: Steven Pressfield, Bo Eason, Dr. Diego Hernandez, Gary Sinise, Daniel Coyle, Daniel PinkFor more storytelling tips and strategies, visit:Website → https://rainbennett.comPodcast → https://thestorytellinglabpodcast.comOr follow along at:TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@chiefstorytellingofficerTwitter/X → https://twitter.com/rainbennettInstagram → https://www.instagram.com/rainbennettFacebook → https://www.facebook.com/thestorytellinglabYouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@RainBennett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    1 hr and 4 mins
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