The importance of storytelling. For millennia, we humans have been using stories to communicate, to make sense of events and to preserve and share knowledge. I don’t think there ever been a civilisation on planet Earth that bypassed storytelling as a bedrock of its culture and legacy. In fact, storytelling was probably one of the major contributing factors in our survival and flourishing as a species.
“Stories constitute the single most powerful weapon in a leader’s arsenal.”
Dr. Howard Gardner, professor Harvard University
Wendy A. Suzuki and her colleagues argued that stories are one of the most effective ways to communicate because they help listeners to understand complex concepts and ideas in meaningful ways, often through personal connections. These researchers identified several brain networks involved in the telling and hearing of stories and pointed out that when the listener gets engaged, the brain waves of the listener tend to synchronise with that of the storyteller resulting in the listener feeling the same emotions. This helps to establish rapport, trust and social connectedness.
You can learn more about the magic science of storytelling from TEDx Talk of the presentations expert David JP Phillips.
In their article, Ritu Gupta and Dr Mitali Jha pointed out that the power of storytelling is second to none when it comes to both entertaining and engaging the listener in deep learning at several levels because storytelling:
- creates an in-depth understanding of the issue(s) of concern covered by the story and the drive to resolve them;
- improves the retention and recall of information presented as a story;
- helps to create a bond between the storyteller and the listener which stimulates trust building;
- nurtures the connections and empathy by releasing “feel good” chemicals (oxytocin and dopamine);
- engages all the sense organs to help create a vivid mental picture in the mind of the listener to participate in the act of listening;
- helps to focus on the present and to “declutter” the mind;
- helps in personal development through personal connection and learning.
Therefore, it is not surprising that many leaders use storytelling to great effect to influence their followers. Ludmila Mladkova noted in her article about storytelling and leadership that storytelling addresses the emotions of people, not their rational mind, and so it has the potential to overcome barriers that people build to protect themselves against the external world and new ideas. This explain why storytelling is particularly useful in helping senior executives lead large-scale change initiatives.
So, what is storytelling and how can YOU master it?
Storytelling can be defined as a structured narrative account of real or imagined events.
Following these five practical tips will help you create a highly effective story.
1. Start with intention – Ask yourself these questions:
- What is the intention of telling my story?
- What specifically do I aim to achieve?
- What are my main points and ideas I want to convey?
- What is my call to action?
2. Know your audience – Find out as much as you can about your audience(s) and choose a story with a structure, details and terminology that will best resonate with each audience.
3. Choose the most effective structure for your story – There are many different ways of structuring your story. One of the most popular (and simple) structures is known as “The Hero’s Journey”, or the monomyth, which can be traced back to Aristotle. Its structure may involve the following five steps:
- Problem (Hero sees the problem).
- Struggle and failure (Hero tries and fails to solve the problem).
- Change (Hero realises that he or she has to change/do something different in order to solve the problem).
- Success (Hero does something different or differently and succeeds in solving the problem).
- Evolution (Hero’s reality is forever changed – he or she has a new/improved reality with new/improved possibilities, opportunities and benefits).
Highlighting the conflict between the old problem and the new desired state, the struggle and failed attempts to solve the problem and the “light bulb”/change moment makes your story more interesting and emotionally charged, as it evokes personal memories and associations in your audience.
4. Use a persuasive story pattern – The conflict between the old problem (status quo) and the new desired state can create tension that will help you to persuade your audience to adopt a new mindset or behave differently – to move from what is (the problem) to what could be (the desired state, the compelling vision of the future).
Use this pattern several times during your story, more specifically:
- Describe the problem your hero faces and the dream/desired outcome he or she has.
- Go back and forth deliberately contrasting the struggle and failure of your hero against the vision of what could be/the dream/desired state.
- Highlight how the change can solve the problem and help to achieve the desired state.
- Emphasise that your hero has achieved success by changing (doing something different or differently).
- Draw the attention of your audience to the evolution of the hero from where he or she was, to where he or she is now – his or her new/improved reality with new/improved possibilities, opportunities and benefits.
Keep it simple and don’t let needless details detract from your core message(s).
5. Be mindful about the language you use because it is vital to the impact of the message(s) you are trying to convey through your story. You can enhance the emotional impact of your story by using sensory-reach language to appeal to varying learning styles (visual, auditory and kinesthetic) in your audience and to help people see, hear, feel and experience elements of your story in their minds.
In addition to the sensory-reach words, consider using the following language patterns to enhance the impact of your story:
- Metaphors, similes and analogies;
- Repetition of key messages;
- Themes which have a hypnotic effect, such as freedom and possibility;
- Cause-effect statements.
Make sure you use some of the following “power words” in your storytelling: imagine, because, which means …, remember, now, free, easy, safe.
A Bonus Tip:
According to some public speaking gurus, a successful speech will depend on how well the presenter follows the 3Ps:
- Preparation
- Practice
- Performance
Once you have prepared your story, visualise (daydream) before you practise – run the whole story in your head, memorising the key points, messages and details, and imagining the gestures and movements you will make.
Practise telling your story either in the mirror, with a tape recorder or video camera. Use a clock to check your timings.
When you are telling your story to your audience, remember: a good story is never perfect. Nobody expects you to be perfect. Stories tend to evolve and get even better each time you tell them!
