Telling stories at work

Every human is a natural storyteller, we just don’t do it very well at work. One reason for this is because storytelling has been conditioned out of us by the time we leave school and assertions and statements have become our default communication approach.

Some of our greatest thinkers understood the effectiveness of conveying a message through a compelling story.

MYTH #1: STORYTELLING IS AN INNATE ABILITY (A SUPERPOWER)

We regularly hear people dismiss storytelling because they believe there are only a handful of lucky wordsmiths and raconteurs with this natural ‘gift of the gab’. This thinking is misguided. And research confirms why. In 1996 Robin Dunbar, published a paper titled Grooming, Gossip, and the Evolution of Language indicating that in informal situations, humans spend as much as 65 per cent of the time talking about ‘who did what to whom’. In other words, telling stories.

So the challenge is not to become a storyteller, the challenge is simply to apply it in the work environment where things are a little more formal.

I recently worked with a group of researchers working in the field of convergent nano-bio science (I had to look it up too). At the start of the session, I understood little when they explained their research. By applying some simple narrative approaches and structures, within a few hours, they were able to explain their research clearly and impactfully.

One of the group members recently presented his research at a conference using these techniques and received the award for ‘best presentation’ as selected by the audience. He won this award despite having presented in English, which is very much his second language. This demonstrates that the use of story in a business context is accessible to all.

MYTH #2 – STORYTELLING IS ONLY GOOD FOR BUILDING RAPPORT, BY USING OUR PERSONAL STORIES

Story is a powerful tool for building connection and rapport, no doubt about it. But this is simply the entry-level use of story for leaders—just the tip of the corporate storytelling iceberg. While research from the University of Wisconsin found the activity of storytelling had an impact on the participants’ interpersonal relationships, empathy, and sense of connectedness, it does so much more than that—as Lincoln pointed out.

A story is a powerful tool and, if you know how to use it, it can tackle many different business problems. You can use a story to change minds; communicate strategies, decisions, ideas, value, and changes; or use it to just make a point extra clear.

When I was last in New York, I ran a program with a group of senior vice-presidents from a global technology company. One of the group members said he was very busy and he felt he didn’t have time to use storytelling to communicate his messages. He said he just needed to tell people to do what he wanted. I shared with him an example I’d read recently:

A manager of a fast-food outlet noticed one of her new staff was standing idly, cloth in hand, during a busy period. Her normal approach would be simply to tell him to clean tables, but she realised there was high staff turnover, so maybe she needed to change. She tried something different.

She walked over to him and said, “Do you remember the mother and daughter at table five a few minutes ago?”

“Yes,” he answered.

“How old do you think the daughter was?” she asked.

“About five, I guess.”

“Yes, that’s what I think as well. I don’t know if you noticed what happened when the mother went to the bathroom. The little girl got up on her chair and started licking the table. It’s so important we keep the tables clean.” The manager then walked off. She looked back and the young man was energetically cleaning tables.

I pointed out to the executive that the story approach might take a few seconds longer, but it has far more impact. Part of this is because stories convey emotion. As Canadian neurologist Donald Calne says, “The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action while reason leads to conclusions.”

MYTH #3 – STORYTELLING ISN’T BUSINESS-LIKE

Again, this view is very limiting. Stories should be viewed as facts, wrapped in context, delivered with emotion. Think of story as simply a more effective delivery mechanism for your messages—a ‘container for meaning’ that humans have evolved to respond to. Humans are wired for stories.

Internal stories can give a listener an impression of what life is like at a company, or a sense of the character of the senior team. This is why it’s important to craft both strategic and personal stories that can be conveyed for employees who work away from the office.

“Those that control the stories, control society,” wrote Plato. It’s just as true in business.

Humans are not rational machines, we’re emotional beings who want to connect with others. Stories allow us to do just that.

1. What I do is too technical. Storytelling wouldn’t apply.

The truth is if what you do is technical, storytelling is even more critical to humanize the process and because if you can’t make what you do accessible and explain how your very technical work serves your clients, then how on earth will anyone understand you? And guess what? Technical people are still people!

2. I’m not a natural storyteller. I think it’s something you’re just born with.

First of all, storytelling is a skill and all skills can be learned. But you also already tell stories, I promise you. You do not talk about your vacation or dinner with your family as a list of details – you just don’t. So this notion that you aren’t telling stories is simply not true. You don’t talk about your day at work like you’re reading an agenda or describe the birth of your child as an event on a timeline, you tell a story. Stop telling yourself you aren’t a storyteller- we are all storytellers.

3. My clients are bottom line people – they don’t care about storytelling.

As someone who does presentations for a living, let me assure you if someone is telling you to just get to the point, it’s not a story slowing you down, it’s your presentation which is very likely too dense, too technical or simply just boring and uninteresting. The story is not the reason they want you to move it along. Bottom line people are still people with brains that respond to stories.

4. My industry is different.

Is your industry made up of humans? Then no, it’s not different. I know you think it is but again, it just doesn’t matter what you do or how very specialized or complicated it might be, your clients are humans. Decision makers are humans and if you fail to integrate narrative, you’re working so much harder to move them.

5. I don’t have any good stories.

If you haven’t worked long enough to acquire a library of stories, then ask colleagues. Share your organization’s success. Use WE instead of I. There are stories about your company’s success – it’s your job to listen and share those stories. ASK! If you are about to meet a prospect, ask someone more senior about a success story that would be appropriate to tell your client. Don’t show up with marketing material that is just a list of capabilities or features and benefits or beat them over the head with jargon that doesn’t mean anything. Come with a compelling story.