Startup Storytelling — powered by RDSW
Learn how to shape a clear, compelling startup story for pitching, hiring, and growth
Most founders struggle to clearly explain what they do — and why it matters. This hands-on workshop is designed to fix that. Join us, and learn how to craft startup stories that are easy to follow and hard to forget.
Storytelling is at the heart of every successful startup, whether you’re pitching investors, recruiting your first team, or introducing your company to the world. The session will be led by storytellers who influence how narrative is taught, applied, and experienced — offering a depth of perspective you don’t often get in a single afternoon.Through practical exercises and guided frameworks, you’ll refine how you talk about your startup so your answers to “What do you do?” and “What does your company do?” leave a lasting impression.
Who is this event for?
This workshop is for startup founders and early team members who want to:
Communicate their vision with clarity, confidence, and impact
Transform complex ideas into stories that engage and inspire
Practice storytelling in a low-stakes, supportive environment
If you’re ready to make your story stick — whether with investors, customers, or new hires — this event is for you.
Why should you attend?
Storytelling isn’t just a nice-to-have — it’s an essential tool to grow your startup. This workshop will give you:
Practical frameworks. Learn proven storytelling structures and neuroscience-backed techniques. We’ll go beyond the theories behind storytelling — and you’ll shape language you can use the very next day.
Hands-on practice. Work in small groups to craft and refine your story in real time. Most founders learn storytelling through trial, error, and a lot of awkward conversations. This workshop shortens that curve by compressing the process into one focused afternoon.
Confidence and clarity. Leave with polished, meaningful answers to “What do you do?” and “What does your company do?” The impact goes well beyond pitches — investor meetings improve, but so do sales calls, hiring conversations, and everyday introductions.
Connection to the ecosystem. Meet other founders, exchange ideas, and tap into the RDSW network.
What will we cover?
Why storytelling matters: Explore how narrative shapes attention, influence, and memory — and why it changes how people respond to your ideas.
How to build a story: Learn how to structure and shape your story so it’s clear, compelling, and moves people to action.
Why it’s hard: Surface the common traps founders fall into — and learn simple ways to move past them.
Storytelling as an integrated system: Learn how a clear story travels through your startup — not as a story that lives on a single slide, or in one person’s head, but as a story that aligns conversations, decisions, and culture.
Who is leading this event?
Startup Storytelling is led by a team of experienced entrepreneurs and expert storytellers:
Amy Wyron Robinson helps early stage founders and entrepreneurs to craft their own stories and multiply their impact. After a 20 year career helping to build, envision and operate early stage unicorns such as Waze (acquired by Google $1B) and Moovit (acquired by Intel $1B), Amy is now thrilled to be back at Duke University as a Senior Lecturing Fellow, where she teaches Narrative Design, Entrepreneurial Mindset, and New Venture Discovery to undergrads, graduate students, MBAs and PhDs. She also mentors the Melissa and Doug Entrepreneurship Program, Duke’s premier program for student founders. Amy believes that everyone has a story worth telling, and that good storytelling is a superpower.
Rain Bennett is an award-winning filmmaker, author, keynote speaker, and storytelling strategy consultant. He hosts a weekly podcast called The Storytelling Lab, which features tips and success stories from the world's top storytellers. His second book, The Chief Storytelling Officer, is scheduled for release in August 2026. In 20 years and over 1000 interviews, he has realized one consistent truth: stories hold a profound power, but only if one knows how to use them effectively for those who need to hear them.
Dr. Sarah Glova researches achievement and how people grow into their potential — work shaped not only by academia, but by building a company she founded in 2012. Her research and perspective have taken her from the classroom to major stages and widely shared talks, a fitting turn for someone whose report cards once read, “talks too much.” Today, whether she’s teaching graduate students, leading her company, or stepping onto the TEDx stage, storytelling is how she makes ideas stick, helping people turn insight into real-world action.
Raleigh-Durham Startup Week
Startup Storytelling is powered by Raleigh-Durham Startup Week, part of a year-round series of events that equip Triangle entrepreneurs with practical skills, actionable knowledge, and meaningful connections.