“True belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; it requires you to be who you are.” -Brené Brown, Braving the Wilderness: The Question for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone
Leadership isn’t about having the right answers, it begins with the curiosity to ask good questions. Key questions Class 55 explored with genuine curiosity in this seminar were, “Who are we?” and “What does it mean to belong?”.
During our November seminar, Class 55 investigated how authentic storytelling, the concept of belonging, curiosity, and asking good questions shape effective leadership. Together, we painstakingly practiced turning our lived experiences into compelling stories, approaching life with a sense of child-like curiosity, and transforming vulnerability into a sense of connection and belonging.
Join us as we dive into the latest edition of Class 55’s story.
A Simple Posture: Curiosity Over Certainty
This month’s posture was Curiosity, an attitude toward the unfamiliar, one that increases trust, reasoning, and adaptability in ambiguity. Children are naturals at maintaning a curious posture. On theme, we embraced the importance of play through team-building play exercises led by Ms. Kristi Weddige and Dr. Marnie Goldenberg. Cheering on our classmates through rock-paper-scissor battles, completing blind-folded mazes, and crafting secret handshakes allowed us to channel our inner child as we transitioned to learning about the importance of curiosity.
We practiced being curious as we traded assumptions for inquiry, swapped perspectives with classmates, and rewrote “curiosity killer” statements into genuine questions. In “Asking Good Questions” with Dr. Dane White, we reframed questioning from an information extraction exercise into a bridge-building opportunity. Excellent questions focus on curiosity, not performance, and progress through levels: clarifying, experience-exploring, values-based, possibility-oriented, and perspective-shifting.
Unexpected: Learning about Effective Storytelling through Song
During “The Speaker Studio – Master Class,” Class 55 had the unexpected pleasure of being serenaded by Dr. Tobin Redwine, who used music to illustrate how storytelling captures attention and emotion. He taught us that memorable stories follow the SUCCESs model—Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, and rooted in Story. Dr. Redwine demonstrated that when these elements come together, seemingly random information can be packaged into a memorable story that sticks with the reader.
Concrete Skill-Building: Techniques for Presence & Delivery
Our skill development in storytelling progressed from theory into embodied practice during Presentation Techniques in Public Speaking with Dr. Ann De Lay.
This session emphasized developing a sense of command over the room. Allowing us to play with how our bodies and voices are intentional tools for storytelling through gestures, vocal variation, eye contact, and purposeful movement. But at the end of the day, we learned that earnest and genuine delivery is more important than polished veneer.
Credible Practice: From Story to Strategy
In a later session, Class 55 was invited to incorporate everything we had gleaned from Dr. Redwine’s and Dr. De Lay’s seminars. During this “Try it On” workshop, Class 55 each delivered short stories and received structured feedback from our peers and facilitators, including Dr. White, Dr. Erin Gorter, and Honorary Fellow Judy Sparacino. We practiced telling a memorable story that was strengthened with authenticity rather than performance.
Emotional Connection: Origin Stories
The most moving moments of the seminar unfolded as Class 55 explored the meaning of “belonging” with Dr. Erin Gorter and shared our Origin Stories.
Before we shared our Origin Stories, Dr. Erin Gorter guided us through an exploration of belonging inspired by Brené Brown’s “Braving the Wilderness”. We moved back and forth along a spectrum in response to a series of introspective prompts on moments that made us feel more or less like we belonged. This exercise required us to pause, reflect, and dissect where in our lives we may be substituting the ease of fitting in for the reward of true belonging.
After collectively exploring what belonging meant for each of us, we then stood on our own as we told our Origin Stories. Over the course of the afternoon, 24 individuals courageously stood alone to share the values, moments, and people who shaped them. These narratives reminded us that leadership is not built on titles or achievements but on our lived experiences, including moments of struggle, resilience, identity, failure, and hope. As our stories unwound, it became clear that we are bound together by the delicate threads of our shared emotions. When woven together, these threads form a strong rope bound by our shared humanity.
As Brené Brown wrote in her book “Braving the Wilderness”, after our origin story experience, it became clear to each member of Class 55 that “No one belongs here more than you.”
Stories as Strategy: Moving Forward
We closed the seminar with From Story to Strategy, each of us reflecting on how we want to bring home the lessons of storytelling and curiosity in a collaborative mind map. In addition to having the tools to tell more compelling stories, we set out to use curiosity as a daily practice and storytelling as a tool to foster understanding, connection, and meaningful action.
Here are a few ways Class 55 plans to take home the lessons learned during Seminar 2.
“In my work with county and state policy makers, I will use curious questions as a compass – asking thoughtful questions that reveal real needs, clarify intentions, and move us towards solutions that honor both agriculture and the community.” – Lisa Howard
“As a public servant, my commitment is to approach every conversation with genuine curiosity – because thoughtful questions not only ignite new ideas, they strengthen the trust that allows those ideas to take root.” – Claire Aicken
“I’m already digging into the work on asking excellent questions. I tend to need a lot of time to process, so the framework of the “ladder of questions” is very helpful in taking my natural curiosity to a deeper level.” – Logan Robertson Huecker
Class 55 extends a special thank you to Dr. Brian Horgan and Dr. Erin Gorter for generously hosting us at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Dr. Tobin Redwine for spending valuable time away from his family and work in Texas to teach us the SUCCESS storytelling model.
