Forward

Every year I do a three-part review and planning process. I call it Review, Reflect, Forward. Today’s post is Forward. I’ll be discussing what’s up for 2016 and what I’m most looking forward to next year!

If there were one word that sums up 2015 for The Storytelling Non-Profit, it would be: refine.

Although I still did a lot this year, I was much more intentional with my decisions and projects. It was far from perfect, but the messiness was an enjoyable adventure.

On a fun side note, I looked back at the 2014 version of this post and I wrote this: That’s why I think 2015 will (hopefully) be summed up by a very different concept: refine. It was wild to think that I wrote that last year and then again this year without consciously thinking about it.

In 2016 I plan to continue to refine and improve my work. I’ll be teaching The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class again next year. Right now, my plan is to teach it in February and again in July. I’m also planning to develop another class on writing for the Master Class alumni who would like to take a deeper dive into their skills development for storytelling.

I’m making a few changes to my content plan for next year. I’ll be decreasing to 1 blog post per week and I’m considering the idea of changing my newsletter format to every other week. I’m still on the fence about that though.

What am I most looking forward to in 2016?

• Publishing my book in February! This was also on my list last year because my original plan was to publish my book in February 2015. That obviously didn’t happen. But I have been diligently working on it this Fall and I’m planning to publish the book in February 2016. It’s been a challenging process at times and I’ve learned so much from it.
• Offering more in-depth trainings. I’m always humbled by the positive feedback I receive from webinar attendees who enjoy the tactical approach to teaching. Next year, I hope to offer more in-depth and advanced trainings.
• Personal Story Coaching. As I’ve mentioned in other posts that exploring personal narrative has been a big part of 2015. This year, I had the opportunity to work with 3 people on their personal stories and I’m planning to offer this to more people in 2016.
• Building a stronger community. I love the blog and email newsletter community, but sometimes it feels like one-way communication. I want to talk to more of you and I want everyone to talk to each other! I’m considering starting a Facebook group or LinkedIn group. Thoughts?
• The Storytelling Non-Profit Virtual Conference – It’s back for a 3^rd year and I cannot wait! This year I’m aiming to welcome more than 3,000 non-profit professionals to the conference.

What’s my wish for 2016?

My wish for next year is to be more intentional. This means offering even better trainings, writing better blog content, and more.

I don’t like rushing or feeling like I’m only giving 50% to things. I feel so much better when I’m being intentional and doing by very best.

Here’s to 2016 – a year that will bring more stories to tell!