Meet Derrick Hatch | Narrative Practitioner / Personal Development Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Derrick Hatch and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Derrick, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I’ve always loved stories! When I was a kid, I would create my own books, make films with my action figures, record concept albums, and write plays for my friends. As I got into high school, my teenage angst started to manifest as a result of being bullied and bad relationships. Feeling hopeless and misunderstood, I questioned if my story even mattered.

But through a relationship with God, I was inspired to find meaning, and to help others who believed their story didn’t matter. This led to me creating a club on my campus where students shared stories of what hardships they were going through. I continued creating these kind of spaces in college, when I co-founded a recovery ministry that used the stories of the Bible to help young people deal with their hurts, habits, and hang-ups. After doing that for 3 years, I spent another 7 years working at a nonprofit in the inner-city of West Palm Beach, using the arts to help students tell their stories.

In all these settings, I sought to create safe spaces where people could talk about their lives, including their problems, sense of purpose, and hopes for the future. In these conversations, I noticed how influential narratives are in shaping one’s identity, both externally (via books, films, the media, history, culture, religion, etc.), and internally (the personal narratives we tell ourselves based on our experiences.). I embarked on a quest towards better understanding the role of storytelling, reading books like Donald Miller’s ‘A Million Miles in a Thousand Years’ and Jonathan Gottschall’s ‘The Storytelling Animal’.

It was on this journey that I became acquainted with Narrative Therapy (also called Narrative Practices), a field of study that uses story to help people make sense of their lives. I was accepted into the University of Melbourne’s Masters program for Narrative Therapy and Community Work (virtually). For my thesis, I developed a curriculum that could guide people in better understanding and telling their life stories. It was out of this research and practice that All Things Narrative was born.

I began facilitating workshops for adults and classes for youth. My goal was to create safe spaces for people to tell the stories of their lives. In sharing these stories, participants shared pieces of themselves that were longing to be seen. As they learned to tell their stories in ways that made them stronger, they developed a deeper connection with one another that felt like family. After I graduated, I officially established All Things Narrative, implementing the best of what I had into our ‘Live A Meaningful Story’ coaching program.

One of my other motives for starting All Things Narrative was finding ways to spend more time with my kids. I wasn’t satisfied living in a story where I missed out on my kids growing up due to long commutes and overtime hours. Being an entrepreneur has allowed me to create a more flexible work-life balance, one where I can play an active role in the developing stories of my two young daughters. Everything I do, I do unto the Lord and for them. My family ultimately empowers me to live a meaningful story, and I hope to do the same for others.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
All Things Narrative offers a unique approach to personal development. We incorporate storytelling because we believe that it is the universal language of humanity. We all tell stories about our experiences; and from those experiences, we derive meaning that shapes who we are and how we see the world. Thus, we believe that learning to tell our stories, can you give us clarity about what we want in life, while also strengthening our connections with the people around us.

There are seven types of experiences we offer:

– ‘Live a Meaningful Story’ is our flagship coaching program and is great for people who want to go deep exploring their lives as a story through Narrative Therapy Practices.

– Our workshops for organizations are ideal for staff development days. ‘Crafting Your Company’s Narrative’ is a 2-day workshop designed for small-medium sized organizations (from nonprofits to churches to businesses) that facilitates conversations with leadership and staff about their story and how to navigate the challenges they are facing; the goals include strengthening everyone’s connection with their mission, and unifying the team around a shared vision.

– Our storytelling classes teach storytelling skills and concepts (the Hero’s Journey, Narrative analysis) to people of all ages and are perfect for educational institutions (youth programs, colleges, libraries, etc.).

– The All Things Narrative podcast explores the relationships between the stories we love and the stories we live, featuring a variety of conversations about pop culture and people’s lives.

– We also offer 1-on-1 coaching by the hour via Zoom for anyone who wants to straighten out their own story, write their story, or start a legacy project for their family.

– With over 15 years experience speaking to nonprofits, churches, businesses, youth programs, and schools, we also offer motivational speaking for events, churches, and company retreats.

– And finally, if a community is looking to put on a storytelling event, we will joyfully partner with them to help facilitate and execute it, so that it is an evening filled with intentional ways for people to connect through stories.

No matter what sort of personal development experience people are after, we believe our unique approach (through a variety of offerings) can serve them.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I live in Palm Beach County, so some of the places I would take a guest include:

– Orient Garden, Wellington: A mixed Asian restaurant with high quality food available for dine-in and take-out.
– Loxahatchee Ice Cream, Loxahatchee – The best ice cream you’ll find in the area, with new flavors made frequently in-house!
– Common Grounds Brew & Roastery, Multiple Locations: My favorite local coffee shop with open mic nights and other events throughout the month.
– The West Palm Beach Green Market on Clematis for great food and vendors.
– Lion Country Safari, Loxahatchee: A unique hybrid drive-thru safari park and zoo, great for families with kids.
– Past, Present, Future Comics (West Palm Beach) and the Book Exchange (Palm Beach Gardens): Some of the best book stores I’ve found in all of Florida.
– Various Antique/Thrift Shops
– And of course, the beach

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There is no such thing as a ‘self-made’ entrepreneur. I. stand on the shoulders of many giants, influential figures, and local mentors. Many key people helped me start All Things Narrative. Patrick Lafferty, Founder/CEO of Modern Living, was the first person who listened to my pitch for the business, and he has continued giving me helpful advice ever since. Adrian Wilcox helped develop my branding, including my logo and marketing language. And Richie Vasquez gave me my first business opportunity, inviting me to utilize what I do to help launch and sustain a youth group. There are so many others that have really contributed to the success of All Things Narrative, I simply don’t have enough room to acknowledge them all properly here!

Website: https://www.allthingsnarrative.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allthingsnarrative/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derrick-hatch-4447a81a6/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allthingsnarrative

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@allthingsnarrative

Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/2LpZrlPynIzMQm9NjUU9lA?si=425c4314f2cc4834

Image Credits
The last photo of me on stage with a microphone and white shirt was taken by Instagram: @timeless.mediaa