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By JANET KRAYDEN
CAPITAL
GAINS
CHANGINGMINDSWITH THE POWEROF PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
Personal stories:
Compellingandpowerful tools for change
Building on more than a
century of Canadian agriculture innova-
tion and know-how, farmers are reach-
ing record levels of productivity while
actively protecting the environment.
Canada’s safe, sustainable and cost-effi-
cient food-supply system is the envy of
the world.
But the average people on the street
remain skeptical and unsure because
they are completely unaware of what
farmers and industry are doing. Many
city people are more than two genera-
tions removed from the farm. And there
is a lot of misinformation circulating
and multiplying on the Internet.
No organization is held up for ques-
tioning more than Monsanto.
While Monsanto’s headquarters are
located in St. Louis, Missouri, known as
the “show me” state, it seems today we
are part of the “show me” generation.
And farmers are having a hard time
keeping up with all the misinformation,
which is emotionally based, rampant
and immediately available (sometimes
even “viral”). After all, farmers need to
make a living.
But it does seem that this sort of mis-
communication is leaching its way into
the halls of legislatures and Parliament,
and beginning to have an effect on
public policy.
So how can farmers fight back?
By making it personal.
According to Cami Ryan, Ph.D., an
innovative thinker and communications
expert who explained the art and sci-
ence of the food conversation in a recent
Ag More Than Ever
webinar, “We think
in pictures and we are story processors.”
Farmers’ personal stories are an
important government relations tool to
bring balance to weighty, often confused
issues. I have personally seen politicians
and the media perk up, lean forward and
pay attention when a farmer tells a per-
sonal story one-on-one. Personal stories
are compelling and powerful tools for
change because they are memorable and
persuasive. They are effective because
they are evocative, emotional and real.
When you need to communicate an
issue, think to yourself, “How does
this affect my own farm personally?”
Tell your personal story, explaining the
physical processes on your farm. For
example, when you are explaining the
grain handling system, describe how you
haul your grain to the elevator, explain-
ing the steps you take. Do not assume
the person you are talking to knows
anything about how you farm today.
When telling your personal story, be
concise. Make sure you have a catchy
headline to open with, move to an excit-
ing lead, and narrow your story down to
three main points. If you need to explain
how rail service issues need to improve,
describe how last year’s carryover of
grain is affecting your farm this harvest
by breaking it down: when you usually
haul your grain to the elevator, why you
are forced to do it differently this year,
how late trains affect your busy schedule,
and the financial cost to your own farm.
Pictures and videos are also helpful
in communicating ideas to the “powers
that be” in Ottawa. Personal stories and
pictures from your farm are compelling,
real-life evidence that farm groups and
farmers need to fully utilize when ap-
pearing at a government committee.
I saw a presentation exclusively made
up of pictures, and it was referred to
as the “best presentation” on the grain
handling issue. Likewise, I have seen a
farmer give an effective presentation on
the complicated topic of low-level pres-
ence (LLP) in grain by using pictures; it
resonated, made good common sense,
and was remembered by agriculture
officials and policy makers alike.
Farmers are still seen as the honest
broker, and there is power in a farmer’s
personal story. The Canada West Foun-
dation recently commissioned an Ipsos
Reid survey, which found that Canadi-
ans trust farmers the most compared
with those in the energy, mining and
forestry industries.
Knowing this, farmers need to bravely
go where they have not gone before.
Farmers need to move outside of their
comfort zone and share their powerful
personal stories with government and
also with the public at large.
Janet Krayden is a lobbyist and communi-
cations expert living in Ottawa. She originally
hails from a mixed farm near Acme, Alberta.
Fall
2014
grainswest.com
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