Nine steps to leading with story
Everyone loves a good story. They grab our attention and remain in our memory. They slice through the overload of data and dry information, and fire up our synapses. Stories illustrate our values, show our culture and communicate the essence of a brand.
Here are nine ways to harness Story in your organisation:
Use stories to cut through noise. We are all bombarded with information. Cut through with story-led messaging that inspires, energises and sticks in the audience’s mind.
Show your personal side. Stories that reveal your personal side build empathy and show your teams you're human.
Build a storytelling habit in your teams. Every presentation or all-hands meeting is an opportunity to tell a story to illustrate your point; and it’s particularly effective to start with a story. Encourage your team to seek out, collect and share stories too.
Create a story bank. Create a library of your go-to stories. Make time for reflection and identify and unearth the stories that matter, to draw down when you need them.
Paint a picture. Bring stories to life with details of people involved, places that set the scene, a sense of atmosphere. The more elements your audience can visualise, the more memorable and relatable the story will be.
Lift the lid. Stories are everywhere: be curious to dig them out and ask questions of your teams and departments. ‘Lift the lid’ on the stories waiting to be discovered.
Use stories as an agency for change. Identify a behaviour you want to change or encourage and find a story that best illustrates that. Stories are great ways to change behaviour, motivate colleagues and nurture culture.
Make it sweat! Once you’ve found a good story, use your preferred channels to ensure the message gets out: a presentation, a LinkedIn post, a video, an email, face-to-face and so on.
Keep it simple. Humans have been telling stories for thousands of years. It’s a skill that’s innate in all of us, and it doesn’t have to be complicated. The hallmark of a good story is whether it will be passed on and shared between colleagues.
The Ian Sanders Company runs storytelling training programmes and workshops for leadership teams in organisations. Drop us a line hello@iansanders.com
