This is the first in a short series on having challenging conversations either in your classes or individually with students. The topics covered in these posts come from the GMCTL short-course Challenging Conversations. The ideas and concepts shared in the course and these posts were contributed in large part by Dr. Rose Roberts, Roberta Campbell-Chudoba, Dr. Wendy James, and myself, Heather Ross. One of the first concepts we talk about in the Challenging Conversations short-course is the stories we tell. While later in the course we talk about the importance of storytelling in many cultures and the role it can play in your own courses, this initial discussion is about…