Story Cards

Designing a Product to Solve Silence

Some groups jump right into conversation. Most don’t.

Awkward silences, blank stares, the uneasy feeling of not knowing where to start — that’s the gap Story Cards were built to bridge.

This wasn’t just a creative challenge. It was a psychological one: could design help people find words when they didn’t have any, and start talking about the things that matter?

CREATIVE DIRECTION | PHOTOGRAPHIC ART DIRECTION | PRODUCT DESIGN

The Challenge

The problem wasn’t “what do Story Cards look like?” It was what do they need to do?

From therapy groups to classrooms, from faith conversations to political discussions, people often need help getting started. The challenge was to create a tool simple enough to work anywhere, but powerful enough to unlock real conversation.

It had to:

  • Lower the barrier for people who feel nervous or uncomfortable.

  • Work across a wide range of settings (care, education, faith, community).

  • Spark honest dialogue without forcing it.

The Creative Process

The breakthrough came from listening to leaders across different group settings. Again and again, we heard the same thing: when words fail, images step in. Participants would point to a picture on a wall, a photo in a book, even a piece of art nearby and say, “I feel like that.” They didn’t always know why — but the picture gave them a way in, a metaphor that opened the door to conversation.

If images could do that accidentally, we realized they could also do it intentionally.

We began with a feelings wheel and narrowed it down to a curated list of 40–50 emotional words we wanted to capture visually.

  • Photography sourcing: Partnered with local photographers, paying them hourly to surface existing images. Selected photos were licensed at a set rate.

  • Image pool: Collected over 1,000 images tied to the emotional word list.

  • Focus groups: Invited participants to physically sort through images, eliminating what didn’t resonate and refining down to the strongest options.

  • Live testing: Tried different card versions in real settings — from small groups to care programs — to see which ones truly sparked conversation.

The design also carried a subtle nod back to the organization’s Starting Point Curriculum, creating continuity for users already familiar with that material.

A collection of various printed photographs scattered together, including landscapes, people, buildings, and historical artifacts.
A pile of printed photographs, some with nature scenes including trees and flowers, spread on a plain surface.
Boxes of story cards with a picture of a smiling child running outdoors on one card, and the text "STORY CARDS GET EVERYONE TALKING" on the boxes.
Text on a dark blue background that reads, 'Break Through One-Word Answers Build Real Connection'.
A series of five story card boxes with various images. The second box shows a goose and a duckling, and the fourth box depicts hands holding ice cream cones. The middle box has a blue background with speech bubbles and the words 'STORY CARDS GET EVERYONE TALKING'.
A dark blue background with light blue text that says, "A picture is worth a thousand words. Story Cards create a thousand conversations."
A blue box of story cards with speech bubbles design, labeled 'Story Cards' and 'Get Everyone Talking' on the front and side.
Collage of various photographs, including a person in swimming pool, a woman reading outside, children jumping on a beach, a close-up of a cat, a person focusing on a laptop, a person with colorful nails and watch on yellow background, a boy with a flashlight, a paragliding over coast, plants sprouting in soil, and a person wearing sports gear.
A collection of various photographs and story cards, including images of people, a broken window, lipsticks, a lighthouse at sunset, graffiti, a person standing on a street, a person jumping between rocks, and other scenes.

Why It Worked

Unique Solution

Turning a psychological barrier (awkward silence) into a design challenge solved with images.

Participatory Design

Using focus groups and live testing to refine images that genuinely sparked conversation.

Design Empathy

Framing conversation through imagery so anyone could participate, regardless of comfort with vulnerability.

The Experience

The final deck gave facilitators a simple but powerful tool.

  • Instead of asking, “How are you feeling?” facilitators could say: “Which picture feels like your life right now?”

  • Instead of forcing a conversation, the cards offered a visual shortcut to honesty.

  • The tactile nature of the cards created an easy, low-pressure way to participate — even for people reluctant to speak first.

Scenic landscape featuring a large body of turquoise water, green hills, and mountains under a cloudy sky.
Cover of a deck of story cards with a dark blue background and multiple outlined speech bubbles in blue, with the title "Story Cards" in white text in the center.
A woman with her eyes closed and face relaxed, sitting beside a window with sunlight illuminating her face.
Broken glass window with multiple cracks and a large hole in the center, with aged metal framing.
Modern conference room with a long rectangular table surrounded by white swivel chairs, large windows with a city view, a wall-mounted television, and a built-in bench along the windows.
A person lifting a barbell with weights at a gym.
Slide with the title 'EXAMPLE QUESTIONS' listing questions about personal experiences, beliefs, feelings, future plans, journey, and reasons for decisions.
A young boy running and playing in water spray outdoors during late afternoon or early evening, with a background of blurred trees and warm sunlight.
An informational poster with a dark blue background and light blue and white text explaining how to ask good questions, emphasizing stories and feelings, with tips for starting small and engaging in conversation.
A concert with a group of performers on stage and a large crowd of people reaching their hands towards the performers.
Blackboard with white handwritten mathematical equations and formulas, including a boxed notation indicating p equals 3.
A young boy wearing a red shirt playing Jenga, carefully removing a block from a tall wooden Jenga tower.
A desert landscape with a yellow road sign pointing to the left and right, with mountains in the background under a clear blue sky.
Variety of colored donuts with different toppings and glazes on a white surface.
A woman with dark hair, wearing a black long-sleeve top and light-colored jeans, stands in a bookstore reading area, facing a wall covered with numerous notes and papers. Bookshelves filled with books surround her. The top shelf displays books with t
A person standing on a mossy rock in front of a tall waterfall in a lush green forest.
A metal gate secured with a chain and a padlock.
Lighthouse at dusk with a starry sky overhead.
A person paragliding over a beach with cliffs, ocean waves, and a clear sky.
Indoor escalators leading up in a modern, glass-roofed building with concrete walls.
Swimmers diving into the pool at the start of a race, with multiple lanes marked by red and green lane dividers.
A young man with a backpack looking at a row of illuminated vending machines filled with various snacks and drinks in a dark room.
A person refueling a red sports car with a green fuel nozzle at a gas station.
Instructions on how to use storycards in a group activity, including spreading the cards, asking questions, sharing answers, and encouraging enthusiasm, transparency, listening, and curiosity.

The Outcome

The Story Cards set was printed, released, and quickly became the organization’s best-selling product.

  • Now in its third edition, it continues to sell thousands of sets every year and remains the publisher’s top-selling product annually.

  • It has grown almost entirely through word-of-mouth adoption, with increasing digital marketing efforts expanding its reach even further.

  • It’s used in settings ranging from classrooms to counseling to churches — anywhere people need help starting hard conversations.

The strong and enduring success confirms that a well-designed product can do more than look good — it can change the way people talk to each other.