Story Circle
Story Circle is a contemplative practice in authentic expression and deep listening. In an intimate group of maximum 10 people, we gather to share personal stories around themes that matter: moments of challenge, transformation, joy, or insight that have shaped who we are.
But here's what makes Story Circle different: we're not sharing to get feedback, advice, or validation.
We're coming together to practice something more subtle and profound. The courage to be witnessed without needing external affirmation, and the art of listening without the urge to offer solution, provide advice, or relate the story back to ourselves.
Each person shares their story within a gentle time container (5 minutes), ensuring everyone has equal space to be heard. After each share, we sit together in silence—not awkward emptiness, but full presence. This spaciousness allows our nervous systems to integrate what we've heard, gives our thoughts time to catch up, and honours the story that's just been offered.
After the silence, someone might offer a brief reflection. Not feedback on your story, but simply express in a few words how it landed in them. Other times, the silence alone is the response. Both are complete.
Who is Story Circle for?
Story Circle welcomes anyone curious about authentic expression, deep listening, and the experience of being witnessed without agenda.
You might be drawn to this if:
You're interested in contemplative practices and mindful communication
You're seeking genuine human connection in an increasingly digital world
You're want to become more comfortable with silence and spaciousness
You're willing to be vulnerable without knowing how it will be received
You’ve explored other forms of storytelling and want to try something different
Story Circle might not be right for you if:
You're looking for feedback, solutions, or active problem-solving (come to our workshops, we have great coaches who can help you with that)
You need reassurance or validation when you share difficult experiences
You're hoping to network or build professional connections
You're in acute crisis and need therapeutic support
Why Story Circle matters
We live in a paradox. Never before have we been so digitally connected, yet many of us feel equally isolated. Story Circle offers an antidote, a delicate medicine for our times.
With many of us no longer living within close-knit communities, there are stories we want to share that might not fit a coffee with a friend, a family gathering, or a conversation with a spouse. Sometimes we just need a place to say the words of our stories out loud, within the safe container of a circle.
The stories we will share don't need to be inspiring, entertaining, or come to a neat resolution. They don't need to teach us a lesson, however they need to be your own lived experience and they need to be true.
By practising sharing without attachment to outcome, without needing applause, solutions, or reassurance, we touch into how our experience itself has inherent value. We learn that being witnessed is enough.
And by practising deep listening, staying present with someone's truth without jumping in to fix, compare, or redirect, we offer one of the rarest gifts in modern life: our full, undistracted attention.
A word about what Story Circle is not
Story Circle might not be the right container for every need, and that's okay. Let me be explicit about what we're not offering:
This is not therapy or coaching. Whilst sharing your story can be healing, Story Circle is not designed to process trauma or work through deep psychological wounds. If you're in acute crisis or need professional support, please seek appropriate care.
This is not a feedback or advice space. If you're sharing because you want solutions, suggestions, or to be told "what to do," this circle won't meet that need. We're practising witnessing, not problem-solving.
This is not a space for validation-seeking. If you need external affirmation that your experience was "bad enough" or that your feelings are justified, Story Circle might feel frustrating. We're learning to trust our own experience without needing others to confirm it.
This is not networking or community building (at least not primarily). Whilst connection naturally emerges from authentic sharing, we're not gathering to expand our professional networks or make new friends. Those might be beautiful side effects, but they're not the purpose.
If you recognise that you need validation, feedback, or active engagement when you share something vulnerable, that's completely legitimate. There are wonderful containers for those needs—therapy, coaching, certain support groups. But Story Circle is here to invite us to practise something different.
About the facilitator
I'm Anne V Mühlethaler, founder of Le Trente. My path has taken me from the fashion world (as former SVP of Global Communications at Christian Louboutin) to coaching, mindfulness teaching, podcasting, and creating spaces for authentic connection.
For years, I've been fascinated by how we tell our stories—and more importantly, how we listen to each other. As a certified coach and mindfulness teacher, I've learned that the most profound transformation often happens not through advice or solutions, but through the simple act of being genuinely witnessed.
I've hosted salons, workshops, and conversations for years, always seeking to create what I call "resonant connection"—spaces where people can be fully themselves whilst feeling deeply held by others.
Story Circle is an extension of this practice, informed by:
Years of facilitating intimate gatherings through Le Trente salons.
Training in mindfulness and mettā (loving-kindness) practice (MMTC and Mindfulness Mentor with Banyan).
My work as a coach supporting people to find their authentic voice (WLTC with Martha Beck).
Deep study of contemplative practices and circle traditions and facilitation training.
My own ongoing journey of mindful communication and wise speech.
I lead with warmth, presence, and careful attention in how I hold space. I'm not here as an expert telling you how to do this "right", but rather as a fellow traveller practising alongside you, a few steps further along this particular path.
THE STORY BEHIND STORY CIRCLE
A few years ago, on a prompt, I explored what is an idea I wanted to put out in the world. What came out later became an essay, called We Need a New Word. With Story Circle, I'm taking a bold step toward creating a new kind of space for personal expression that is not performative nor an artistic experiment, but one of being true to our lived experience and to gently unburden ourselves in a trusted container of friends. This is an experiment. Come prepared with a story, you can bring some notes, and if you'd like a space to prepare or explore the stories you could share, look up our Story Alchemy online sessions.
If this resonates, we'd love to have you join our next Story Circle.
For any questions, please email [email protected]