NARRATIVE TRAINING

Over and over again, what we hear from people using the ABT is that, “It provides me with FOCUS in my communication.” Focus is the biggest challenge. Anyone can carry on and on about "this AND this AND this AND this" (AAA structure). What audiences want and need to hear is for you to talk about "this AND this, BUT the problem is this, THEREFORE we are doing this" (ABT structure).
We offer two forms of ABT Narrative Training:
The ABT Course  - our 10 hour course that includes core lectures, guest lectures, and Working Circles for development of your own ABT.
"Nailing It!" Workshop - A three week workshop in which our ABT Team works with participants to take their ABTs and use them to create a 5-minute PowerPoint presentation about a work or research project.
This is our tool, the ABT Narrative Template:
      AND       BUT       THEREFORE     Â
Here are just a few of the organizations we’re working with: World Bank, Pfizer, U.S. Forest Service, USDA, National Park Service, FAA, NOAA, Emory University Medical School
Here is our goal: to establish THE ABT MINDSET
A WORKING CIRCLE is a group session where graduates of our NARRATIVE TRAINING program use the ABT Framework to develop and strengthen the core narrative of a project, proposal, paper, presentation -- any material that needs to eventually be communicated either to fellow specialists or the general public.
The ABT is fun. (Here's an article about it.) The course is part of the larger concept of THE NARRATIVE GYM, which refers to anything that exercises the narrative part of your brain, including the course, the podcast, the books, and Working Circles that are part of the course.


Introduction to the narrative tools (in particular the ABT Framework and the Dobzhansky Template).

Start of the journey towards developing “narrative intuition.”

Social “entrainment” meaning the habit of developing narrative structure through a 5 person group called a Working Circle.



Mike Strauss
Science

Dianna Padilla
Science

Park Howell
Business

Doug Passon
Law

Shirley Malcom
Science

Rick Nelson
Science

Brian Palermo
Acting

Nancy Knowlton
Science

Matthew David
Film

Dave Gold
Politics

Marlis Douglas
Science

Keisha Bahr
Science

Julie Claussen
Science

Liz Foote
Conservation

Michael Bart
Science

David Pullan
Business

Sarah Jane McKechnie
Business

Patty Limerick
History



Hi, my name's Randy Olson, and I’m a scientist-turned-filmmaker. Here’s my story ...

The ABT Time Podcast is hosted by Dr. Randy Olson. It was launched in spring, 2021. The podcast has a specific focus on the ABT Narrative Framework as a part of the Narrative Gym concept for conditioning the narrative part of the brain.
