Innovation Storytelling has led me to some incredible places in my life. If you read this newsletter, you know that it started for me using stories to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic while working in brothels in Thailand in the 90s and eventually took me to the cool offices of VCs and founders in the Silicon Valleys, Alleys and Wadis of the world. For the most part, F500 intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs in 5 person startups share a similar mission – to challenge the status quo, make a difference for a customer, and maybe make some money along the way.
I love it so much. Helping brilliant people to articulate the goodwill their innovation brings and showing them how to advocate for the resources, runway and recognition they deserve.
Last month, however, the US Air Force invited me to teach their Fellows at the elite but little- known Blue Horizons Academy. These lucky few airmen and women are the future leaders of the Air Force, and they are tasked with learning innovation principles in areas that most of us never have to think about, such as weapons, defense, and communications systems.
When asked what their WHY was, the answer was often, “Keeping you and your family alive, Susan.” Gulp.
They weren’t pitching VCs or a new customer; they were going to pitch the 5 Star General of the Air Force and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Their innovations [which I can’t tell you about] were designed to keep all of us safe and their fellow airmen fighting. Wow.
We weeded through all the military jargon and created a real human connection to the science, technology, and impact they intended. We wove personal stories into the narratives that would become urgent and important to their leaders. We used improv techniques to prepare our voices and be ready for tough questions from the most seasoned airmen. We drafted pitch decks with more purpose and meaning than I have ever coached people to make.
When I asked them what was the most critical takeaway from the training, they said, “Having an outside perspective on how we talk about our work has made all the difference in how we now share our prototypes and plans.”
And I walked away, never more humbled and honored to serve the people who silently serve us every day in ways that we will never know. And I can’t wait to do it again.
If this is exciting to you, please check out the podcast I did with the Dr. Scott Walper, Science Director for Synthetic Biology at the US Office of Naval Research Global. Scott Walper is finding new ways to apply synthetic biology to re-evaluate everything from food to submarine life for the US Navy by tapping startups and internal research to take the Navy to the next level.
TEASER: Next week, we’re going to be launching a whole new series with one of the most connected people in the field of innovation: Peter Temes , the CEO and Founder of the Institute for ILO Institute. Peter has conducted groundbreaking research for Goldman Sachs, ExxonMobil, Microsoft, Disney, EY, Pfizer, GM’s autonomous vehicles group and many others that blazed new trails in innovation. Check out our last conversation here from episode #37.
