Have a good cause, issue or product, convert it to a simple, well told story and the world will listen.
Over Christmas I have been reading books on storytelling by former World Bank executive and Australian author, Stephen Denning. Recently I blogged about Denning's thoughts on corporate storytelling and change.
So how do you construct an effective story that can stimulate people's willingness to change?
A springboard story is one designed to take listeners to a new level of understanding about a change. This type of story can be used to inform, educate or to shake the skeptics out of their complacency or hostility to your new idea.
According to Denning an effective springboard narrative has seven parts:
A strong idea
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The change idea you communicate is clear and worthwhile aiming
for.
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The story is about on a real example of success
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It can be from a program that tested a new idea, a
successful case study from another part of your organisation, or one from the same industry
or a different but nevertheless relevant environment.
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Single protagonist
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Tell the story from the viewpoint of an individual the
audience can relate to.
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Date, time and place
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Set the boundaries of your success example so people readily see your
story’s authenticity.
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Detail
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You only need minimal detail because listeners need mental space to make the leap between what they are hearing and their own situation.
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Ending
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Have a genuinely happy ending: one that illustrates
success in terms of improved outcomes, team work, health, sales, production efficiency
or other measures your audience relates to.
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Purpose
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End with a visible link back to your central
change idea.
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Perhaps we should take a leaf from the history books and use stories, as well as the facts and figures of business logic, as we set out to encourage people to accept change.
