Mastering the art of storytelling can transform ordinary tales into captivating narratives. Uncover the secrets of great storytelling, from crafting compelling characters to building suspense, and learn how to captivate your audience with every word.
How to use storytelling to your advantage
Start with a message
- Who is your audience and what is the message you want to share with them?
- Highlight a struggle
- Mine your own experiences
- Don’t make yourself the star of your own story
- The key is to show your vulnerability
- Keep it simple
ePrize’s founder made up a fake nemesis: Slither
In an all-company meeting, Linkner announced that there was a brash new competitor named Slither.
- He told everyone they were bigger than them, faster than us, and more profitable.
- The story was greeted with chuckles around the room, but it soon became embedded within the company culture.
- Executives kept reinforcing the Slither story with fake press releases about their competitor’s impressive quarterly earnings.
Anchor the story in your personal experiences
Vince Molinaro, managing director of the leadership practice at Knightsbridge Human Capital Solutions, Canada’s biggest HR advisory, tells clients he knows exactly when his career direction snapped into focus
- At his first job out of college, Vince loved the mission but found the atmosphere uninspiring
- A senior manager sensed that Vince wanted to have a bigger impact, and asked him to join several likeminded colleagues on a committee to make their workplace a more positive environment
- They began to make subtle changes, and coworkers’ attitudes started to improve
- Then Zinta was diagnosed with lung cancer, and in her time of need reached out to Vince and encouraged him to leave his job and start his own consulting business
- Power comes from sharing your story with the people you lead so they better understand what motivates you
Principles to Remember
Do: Consider your audience
- Choose a framework and details that will best resonate with your listeners
- Identify the moral or message your want to impart
- Find inspiration in your life experiences
- Don’t: Assume you don’t have storytelling chops
Case Study #1: Embed conflict to motivate and inspire
Josh Linkner was worried his employees were becoming complacent
- ePrize, a Detroit-based interactive promotions company, had seen their company become the dominant leader in the online promotions industry almost overnight.
- Overwhelm your story with unnecessary details
