Team Draft works hard every day to encourage, uplift and strengthen lung cancer advocates. I have been the beneficiary of that encouragement and advocacy training in various ways since I first heard of Team Draft through this video What’s the Biggest Cancer Killer? made by Team Draft with our friend Keith Singer and the Catch it in Time team. I met Chris in person in 2018.

Team Draft has traveled worldwide to connect with the lung cancer community in cancer centres – over 60 in the first year – as well as meeting people in restaurants, at games, and in people’s homes. It matters to Team Draft to really get to know people and help them develop their strengths. Seeing people in their contexts is the best way to more fully understand their story and better support them. Team Draft works strategically, developing leaders and encouraging everybody.

With COVID Team Draft has quickly pivoted to making the most of opportunities. Thanks to online platforms such as Zoom, they meet regularly with a wide variety of people in many places, right from the comfort of home.

Team Draft values the importance of following best practices, such as researching our audience and tailoring our messages to our listener. Team Draft embraces the power of story and audience-appropriate messaging for advocates: “We have to know our audience and we need to know our ask.”

Through Zoom, Chris has introduced some lung cancer advocates to his friend Dr. Dennis Rebelo, a professor, coach and consultant who has developed an effective method for helping people tell their stories better. It’s called StoryPathing, and as we’ve started down this path it’s helped us more deeply explore the power in our stories. This process has great potential for helping advocates tell our stories better.

Advocacy is about relationships and storytelling. More effective storytelling means more effective advocacy and in this case, that can mean better outcomes for people affected by lung cancer.

I’m pumped about the possibilities!

Thank you, Chris Draft, Team Draft, and Dr. Dennis Rebelo!