Storytelling has been around for thousands of years. From ancient cave paintings to the latest web series, stories have always fascinated humanity. Stories have been and always are a highly effective means of conveying messages. It can be seen that when the incident happened, the media not only reported how much damage was done, but they were also looking for insider stories. They might tell us about a young man who jumped out of his boat to save a child who couldn't swim amid the screams of everyone around.
But storytelling isn't just about grabbing headlines.
“The art of storytelling makes management more and more perfect. That's why they always tell stories to inspire and energize employees."
The Art of Storytelling in Management
Have you heard the name Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks? Howard frequently repeats his own story of his own descent from poverty to wealth. His parents were constantly unemployed, but he became the CEO of the most successful coffee shop chain in the world. Seeing his father injured and unable to work inspired him to start a company that took great care of its workers and provided them with benefits such as insurance or reasonable rest.
He often uses this story as an opening to describe the history and mission of Starbucks and to explain many of the decisions he has made regarding the company. In this way, Howard made the company's mission easy to understand, and he described his strategic decisions in a way that could be grasped by anyone listening.
The power of stories
Scientifically, when we listen to stories, our brain produces cortisol which makes us focus more attentive. (Isn't that what anyone wants most when interacting with people?). On the other hand, close stories can prompt the body to make oxytocin. The more oxytocin, the more empathy people felt for each other.
Not to mention, people are more likely to remember stories for longer. Most people forget more than 40% of the information we tell them the next day and 90% after a week. However, they were 20 times more likely to remember events if they were embedded in stories.
But most importantly, stories often lead to action. Speaker Alan Weiss once said, “Logic makes people think and emotions make them act.” If we want to remind employees to do something, logic alone is not enough. We need emotion to get them off the couch and up for action.
One of my recent experiences with the power of stories occurred at a conference with managers. We had the opportunity to analyze case studies and real-life situations. During that meeting, some of you shared their experiences. While the stats are all impressive, it's very different to hear the real story being shared by people. It was a very intuitive, gut-wrenching experience that I still remember vividly.
Step into a management role, get ready to learn the art of storytelling
Like leadership, storytelling is not a natural gift. Rather, it is a skill that can be trained. When it comes to mastering the art of storytelling as a manager, I discovered four secrets.
To create stories that capture listeners' attention and gain their support, it's impossible not to start with understanding your listeners. Knowing what they care about will help us choose the right story and make them more willing to listen. If they don't know what's important to them, there's no other way but to ask.
Next thing, if we want to tell a story, we need a story to tell. Of course, we don't have to go around the world and collect unbelievable stories to share. When we meet new people, we can get to know them by letting them share an inspirational story or two. We can also read from books or the internet to enrich the treasure trove of stories. Reading the stories of other managers will also inspire us and get interesting information to share with other members.
It would be great if those were true stories. A story where the protagonist makes a mistake and then learns from that mistake will have a much stronger impact than a story in which the protagonist overcomes problems without much difficulty. If we are telling our own true story, we can reveal a little of our own weakness to increase trust in what is being said and make our listeners more sympathetic to us. Don't be afraid to talk about bad things because even Superman has his Kryptonite!
The third secret in the art of storytelling is to engage the listener with all the senses. When listeners hear what we see and feel what we feel through the words used in the story, we gain their sympathy and support. One way to get them to react is to use figurative language such as comparisons and metaphors, change the tone of voice to suit the characters in the story, and when recalling certain memories, describe how you felt. Are you worried at that time, your hands and feet shaking, or your heart want to jump out of your chest? Make your audience feel like they're right next to you.
Every story needs to have an ending and when telling stories to employees, partners, and investors, we need to end on a positive note. The purpose of storytelling is to call the audience to act in the direction we are trying to persuade them to go, and to that end, a spark of inspiration is indispensable. Closing the story with motivational quotes or encouraging solutions will ignite the fire in the listener and make the story more memorable.
If someone says that mastering the art of storytelling takes a lot of effort… it's true. But it's worth it. As a manager, how do you use stories to connect, support, guide and achieve your vision?
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