Storytelling is an art form that has been around for as long as people have written about and spoken of stories.
However, today, storytelling is still a growing art form with which to communicate. As the term indicates, a story involves a beginning, middle, and end in which the audience is exposed to different elements to feel immersed.
The elements of a story can be themes, characters, events, and/or italics. The elements are put together in a pattern that is called a plot or story thread. This pattern can be left out if you do not want to or need to for business purposes.
Business communication uses storytelling in several ways. One way is through narrative (the use of examples, anecdotes, or other stories to illustrate points). Another way is through re-telling (using new details or applying them to current events).
Understand how storytelling works
Most emotionally charged experiences leave a mark on us that is difficult to forget. We describe them in terms of feeling and seeing, rather than hearing only of hearing.
When we hear a story, we don’t simply listen to it and forget what you said after that. We understand what was said, how it was said, by combining the various elements of the story into an overall picture.
We can recall details about the stories we’ve heard before, or we can learn something new from them. When we listen to stories with an understanding of the story’s importance without a corresponding picture, we fail to fully gain clarity.
The same principles that create emotional awareness when people tell stories also help people incorporate storytelling into business communications. Here, learn how to unlock its power for your company or audience.
Learn from the masters
Storytelling has been around a long time. We know it through the ancient Greeks, the Romans, and the English after Queen Elizabeth I.
Today, we have access to storyboarding and storytelling techniques in business communication courses and classes. They are not new, they just have a new name.
The power of storytelling comes from our inability to see all sides of an issue or idea but instead only a negative or even horror story. We can be convinced of anything if we are able to listen well.
Practice! Practice! Practice!
This one is hard. Trying to leverage the power of storytelling can make you want to throw up your hands in frustration. It is too hard, too complicated, and/or not applicable to most people.
So, what are we doing? Are we practicing? Are we trying out new ideas before we make our decisions more grounded in story? Or are we just sitting there watching everything around you as if you were somehow responsible for the message they’re sending and for how they’re receiving it.
Maybe you’re reading this article on your cell phone so you can check what country you’re in and whether or not this message is appropriate for your audience. Or maybe you’re sitting down to hear what the speaker has to say because that was their point when they invited them out of the speakers table.
As humans, we like stories that tell a “fascinating tale with a moral at the end.” We find them funny and compelling and we can relate to them. We trust stories greatly and would be willing to listen to them if given the opportunity.
Tell stories with a beginning, middle, and end
This technique was pioneered by Erich Fromm, a prominent author on self-transformation. He argued that the human mind is most receptive to story at its beginning, during the formation of new concepts and systems.
This is because at this stage of our development our brains are most reliant on familiar patterns and ideas to guide them through thought and action. As they grow up in society and in business, things change. People begin to question whether a new concept should have a simple solution, or if it should be packaged in an easy to understand format.
By putting a clear end and end to your ideas, people are less likely to dismiss or forget them. This reduces the likelihood of someone implementing or following through with your idea due to lack of trust or understanding.
Use character development
A character’s development or change over the course of a story is called a transformation. A transformation can be dramatic or even surprising!
Many stories have a beginning, middle, and end. These stories include ideas, ideas, and ideas. Each piece is designed to connect with a audience and support their goals.
By using a transformation as the foundation for your story, you can support more than one person’s agenda, which is why this is such an important element of storytelling.
Use of a transformation can be subtle or not so-depending on whether you want to emphasize its drama or not. If you do, then none of the other elements need to be changed!
If you want to emphasize just how transformational your message or story is, then use thecession of an element(s)to create more of a shock effect.
Incorporate dialogue
Dialogue is the backbone of all great story-telling. Without it, stories are just bald-faced facts followed by questions.
However, while facts and questions are common in all stories, dialogue can be either of these as well.
Dialogues can be factual, questions can be asked to establish believability or understanding. Or they can be descriptive, describing a scene to emphasize a emotion or how characters would communicate if they were in that situation.
As a rule, dialogue is not told but exchanged between people in business communication. This is mostly due to two reasons: first, people do not feel comfortable talking about themselves with the rest of the world around them; and second, people do not know how to exchange dialogue because of lack of confidence or experience in the listener or speaker.
This article will discuss some basic ways to incorporate dialogue into your communications.
Use timing and pacing
The term pace can have several meanings. One way to think of pace is as a technique for pacing a conversation.
A conversation is capped at time, also called time budget. If a person is not using their allotted time, then another person must add to the time to make the impression they want to make on someone.
Using pace in a non-verbals way can be done using pace cadence. A pace cadence is how quickly things are said and how slow others are saying them.
Using very fast pace may create disconfidence in others and make them doubt their message was heard. Using an easy tempo can help relax people and make them feel less like they are talking to an audience of one.
Provide context
While a simple “this is a story” can help set the scene for a communicator, it also provides context.
A story can give context to an event, experience, or person. If you were present at the event, you can give more depth to your communication by using a story than if you were not.
When we are storytelling our brains, we are giving up precious self-control to tell and/or write our stories. When we control our narratives, we can be more honest and direct.
We all have stories that tell us about ourselves, what happened in our lives, or what is happening now that you’re involved with this article or event. But unless they are very personal stories for you, they may not be enough to make an impact on another person.
That is where the use of a storyisle meets the need of the audience to provide context.
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