You know something important is possible. What’s missing isn’t the insight — it’s the language that makes others feel it too.
Book a 30-minute Chemistry Check
Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions on Unsplash
For 30 years, leaders have brought us in when they can feel what’s next but can’t yet say it. They’re carrying the next chapter in their heads. But their teams haven’t seen it. And the first time it gets said out loud, the reactions are hard to take back.
Storyminers helps you shape that hunch in your own voice — clear enough to share, sharp enough that the room leans in instead of pushing back.
We run a working session that helps bring the idea out of your head and into words other people can respond to. By the end of the session, you have a first version your team can read and react to. From there, we sharpen it together — testing in the rooms where it has to land.
Most strategic work begins after the direction has already been declared. We come in before — when the direction is still open and the team can help shape it. By the time it’s announced, it’s not news to your team.
Founders, CEOs, and senior leaders thinking one move ahead of their markets — people who can feel the next chapter forming and need it to land.
You don’t need a giant engagement to begin. Most leaders start in one of four places.
When the idea is there, but the words aren’t yet.
Explore Clarifier℠ →Before bigger commitments get made.
Explore Catalyst →So the future is shaped with your team, not handed to them.
Explore Co-Creator →So the work shows up in experience, operations, and growth.
Explore Amplifier →Since our first engagement with Mike, we’ve grown tenfold. We couldn’t have done it without you.
— Chris Iansiti, Iansiti Performance GroupNo slides. No pitch. Let’s see if the problem and the method land.
Book a Chemistry CheckStoryminers — founded 2002.
I’ve encountered many people in my professional life who claim to be storytellers—some can spin a great tale, but I’d walk away with a feeling of wanting more because they rarely connect narrative to execution. Mike is different: he’s a masterful story weaver who also knows how to uncover a business’s core purpose, strengths, and direction. I’ll never forget the moment he paused our discussion and asked, ‘What’s the one metric that defines success for you?’—that question alone shifted my perspective.
When we started working together, I had ideas swirling in my head that felt overwhelming. After just a few weeks, I held a founder’s brief (our “vision and execution deck”) that captured every thought I’d been wrestling with—concise messaging I can use everywhere, a competitive set analysis comparing 15 key players, a persona map with 5 detailed customer profiles, a pricing model outline that pinpoints our initial subscription tiers, and a future-story framework that ties every step back to our ultimate goal. Together, these elements formed a chief-of-staff guide so my first hire could hit the ground running—saving us two months of onboarding time. By partnering so tightly with AI throughout the process—rapidly iterating each section based on real-time insights—we revised at a cadence that built my confidence in the end product faster than I ever imagined.
I wholeheartedly recommend Mike as a strategic advisor to anyone building something new or scaling quickly. If you’re still sketching out your first pitch deck like I was, or you need to align a growing team around a multi-million-dollar rollout, Mike will be the beacon lighting your path ahead. Working with him didn’t just give me a plan—it gave me the conviction I needed to bring it to life.
Photography:
Cindy Brown, Green Media Works
Chief of Staff: Marcela Killin
Other Contributors:
Alan Bergstrom, Amanda Setilli, Barbara Deskey, Bob Westrop, Bryan Beard, Calendly, Cathy Gucker, Christopher Penn, Chuck Reaves, Cindy Brown, Daniel Wise, Darcy Bevelacqua, Dave Rifkin, David Ing, Dez Thornton, Emeka Rajis, Emmanuel Umoh (in memoriam), Greg Rutledge, Hannah Wittenstein, Isaac Wittenstein, Jackie Goldstein, Jakrey Myers, Jason Bernstein, Jon Ferrara, Jørn Nielsen, Julia Michaels, Karina Piva, Kathryn Smith, Keith Finger, Kelly Berdine, Lois Wittenstein, Lori Erlich, Lou Carbone, Marcia Piacentino, Maria Moraes Robinson, Marilena Amorim Ferreira Piva, Mark Cohen, Mark Michelson, Michael Bowers, Mikah Calingo, Mike Werner, Milt Thomas, Pedro Fernan, Peter Drucker (in memoriam), Rahul Singla, Ray Killebrew, Renee Himel, Saurel Quettan, Simon Robinson, Stefan Osthaus, Stephan Haeckel (in memoriam), Tami Puckett, Thom Milkovic, Tyrae S. Campbell, Valeria Farre (in memoriam), Vuthinann (Dan) Hay, Waya Seaparke (in memoriam).
Your next business adventure is waiting. Let’s make it creative, practical, and rewarding–together. As your guide, I’ll help sharpen your ideas and support your team as they bring them to life. Ready to take the next step?