Story telling is the universal language of the human camp. We have been telling each other stories for 40 000 years. We use them to motivate, amuse, warn and share information.
Stories are powerful. Yet are you using them to communicate the good things your organisation does? If not why not? A story is more powerful than a mission statement, annual report or policy document.
I recently came across great advice from Alison Esse of the storytellers.com about how companies can use stories and I thought it is worth sharing with you. Thanks Alison.
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The best way to pitch storytelling to your organisation is to position the argument as a 'winning hearts and minds' one - creating an emotional connection to the organisation, its objectives, goals, strategy and vision rather than simply a rational one.
Assuming that no business leader would argue that they didn't want to create this level of connection, it would be fair then to suggest that a storytelling approach is really one of the most effective ways of achieving this. Since mankind began we have used stories as a powerful way to transfer knowledge and information, engage and inspire people and to spark the emotions, stimulate actions or change attitudes and behaviours.
The best way to pitch storytelling to your organisation is to position the argument as a 'winning hearts and minds' one - creating an emotional connection to the organisation, its objectives, goals, strategy and vision rather than simply a rational one.
Assuming that no business leader would argue that they didn't want to create this level of connection, it would be fair then to suggest that a storytelling approach is really one of the most effective ways of achieving this. Since mankind began we have used stories as a powerful way to transfer knowledge and information, engage and inspire people and to spark the emotions, stimulate actions or change attitudes and behaviours.
It's a necessary and vital part of human bonding.
We all tell and hear stories every day of our lives, in and outside the workplace, and harnessed to specific business messages you can effect the most remarkable changes very swiftly. The corporate 'story' or journey can be structured and told as a narrative which makes it easy to understand and believe in (and corporate narratives should be constructed in the same way as any story narrative), and validated and nurtured with great stories about employees and customers to keep it alive and to sustain interest. Unless leaders believe that 80-deck Powerpoint presentations can achieve the same effect, it's a no-brainer!
It may be a good idea to pitch the idea starting with a great story about an employee who, faced with a particular dilemma (eg customer- related), took a particular course of action to win the day and make something happen that has been truly inspiring or beneficial in some way to the business.
It may be a good idea to pitch the idea starting with a great story about an employee who, faced with a particular dilemma (eg customer- related), took a particular course of action to win the day and make something happen that has been truly inspiring or beneficial in some way to the business.
