Stories Lived. stories told. With Abbie VanMeter
Stories Lived. Stories Told. is a podcast celebrating humanity and all our stories—the beautiful ones, the messy ones, and the ones that are a little bit of both. Through this podcast we will learn to tell our own stories and listen to the stories of others, treating both with care and respect. To do this, we will be exploring the communication theory Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM). CMM states that "persons-in-conversation co-construct their own social realities." Join Abbie as she and her guests use the lens of CMM to better understand their social realities and work to create better ones.
The purpose of Coordinated Management of Meaning is to create better social worlds through better communication. This podcast is about empowering all of us in our communication to see ourselves as curious and active participants with the ability to create meaningful change in our relationships and social worlds.
Our practice of CMM is about embodying a “communication perspective,” which asks us to “look at communication, rather than through it.” To take a communication perspective is to consider what we’re making and how we’re making it through our communication practices. This means we look at patterns, contexts, stories, and relationships; and that we use curiosity, mindfulness, collaboration, and dialogue to create better social worlds for ourselves.
So, join us as we take CMM from theory to practice, engage in collective learning together, and apply a communication perspective to make meaning in our conversations.
What does it mean to perform ”the person you are” as well as ”the person you are not”?
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Today, Abbie, Cathy, and Sarah discuss the difference between play, improvisation, and performance and the role that each can have in our personal and collective growth.
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Cathy Rose Salit is an executive coach, improviser, jazz vocalist, and play activist. She founded The Global Play Brigade, an online community across 100 countries providing free workshops, technical and network support to grassroots activists utilizing play and performance. As founder/CEO Emerita of the leadership consultancy Performance of a Lifetime, she led the growth of the company for over 23 years, working with thousands of leaders and teams in top brand companies. Cathy is the author of Performance Breakthrough: A Radical Approach to Success at Work, and her work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and the Wall Street Journal. She’s been active as a grassroots organizer since she was a teenager; building alternative schools, social therapy centers, independent political campaigns, the East Side Institute and Performing the World and the Applied Improv Network. Cathy lives in St. James, NY and performs at venues including The Jazz Loft and Science Plays Festivals and Madiran The Wine Bar.
Sarah Filman (she/they) is a leadership coach, facilitator, and improviser who uses play as a catalyst for human development. As founder of Playful Perspectives and volunteer with Global Play Brigade, Sarah designs experiences where leaders reconnect with possibility, teams navigate conflict with curiosity, and strangers across continents discover what emerges when they yes-and each other. Drawing on nearly two decades of leadership experience in tech and education (Code.org, Microsoft), Sarah brings strategic thinking and a playful spirit to supporting growth at individual, team, and community levels. Their ”Soft Skills for Hard Conversations” workshop series was funded by Boston's Office of Arts and Culture.
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Take the SLST Survey and give feedback on the Podcast here.
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Learn about the CMM Conference here.
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Stories Lived. Stories Told. is created, produced & hosted by Abbie VanMeter.
Stories Lived. Stories Told. is an initiative of the CMM Institute for Personal and Social Evolution.
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Music for Stories Lived. Stories Told. is created by Rik Spann.
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Explore all things Stories Lived. Stories Told.here.
Explore all things CMM Institute here.
Follow on:
Website: https://www.storieslivedstoriestold.com/podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storieslivedstoriestoldpod
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@storieslivedstoriestold
Background notes
Hi everyone! My name is Abbie VanMeter.
I have just graduated from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana where I studied Interpersonal Communication for the last four years. I first learned of CMM in my Communication Theory class in the Spring of March 2020; the theory had always stuck out to me, but I didn't return to it until I began working on this podcast. I enjoy listening to podcasts and always thought it was something that I could do, too. I think they are an incredible medium for sharing conversations and making ideas accessible. I began developing this podcast as a creative project for my Senior Thesis, which I was required to complete to graduate. However, after reaching out to Kim Pearce and talking further, we decided that this podcast could go beyond the scope of my project. I am so excited to officially be collaborating with the CMM Institute to produce more episodes throughout the rest of 2022! I have such a genuine passion for this project that has been shared by everyone I have worked with so far. My hope is that, through this podcast, I will be able to make all the amazing tools and language that CMM has to offer more accessible to people inside and outside of this existing community. In all the conversations that I have had so far with Kim and the Stewards, I have already felt so welcome. I believe that this community is really powerful and I am excited to be a part of it!
The podcast is titled Stories Lived. Stories Told. and can be found above, as well as on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Anchor. (https://cmminstitute.org/stories-lived-stories-told/ ). Over the course of 2022, I will continue to have meaningful conversations with guests like our very own Dr. Barbara McKay and Rik Spann. In fact, many of our guests you will recognize from this community. Our conversations will always take place through the lens of CMM, but some of my guests may never have heard of CMM themselves. In these conversations, we will use CMM to listen to their stories and to create a space that empowers us to tell our stories, too. At the core of all of this is the question: what are we hoping to create in our social worlds? It is through meaningful, intentional conversation that we truly begin to build better social worlds. You (the listeners) are just as much a part of the conversations that we have on the podcast as me and my guests are. These conversations are meant to be models, to encourage us to take CMM with us into our everyday interactions. I will also be producing many shorter episodes that go in-depth into the theory of CMM, breaking it down and finding ways to apply it to our lives. Not all of us have been given the space to share our stories, engage in thoughtful interactions, or think critically about meaning in our lives. This podcast is that space. Everyone and every story is welcome here. I hope you will join in the conversation! Thank you for inviting me so warmly into this community and for sharing my passion for CMM!
Contact Abbie with questions or ideas at abbievanmeter@gmail.com