We all have stories to tell. Stories can transport and transform us in ways that data and logic simply can’t. If you want to strengthen your message, deliver a more powerful pitch, win over your audience, or create a lasting impression in an interview, try telling a story.
I’ve recently finished reading ‘Stories that Stick‘ by Kindra Hall, keynote speaker and award-winning storyteller. Here, I summarise some of my key takeaways.
The aim of storytelling
If you’re seeking to make a business work, sell a service or product, or persuade other people to come on board with an idea, storytelling will help bridge the gap between seller and buyer. To succeed in this, you need to win your audience’s attention and earn their trust.
Captivating your audience with a story is known as ‘narrative transportation.’ Once you’ve transported your audience with a story, they will be changed. Your audience will experience increased levels of oxytocin, which enhances feelings of empathy and connection. Dopamine will lead to feelings of pleasure and reward. Cortisol levels will be raised, increasing your audience’s motivation. Stories connect us and make us like each other. Human beings are wired to want purpose and meaning. People look for meaning even when there isn’t any. People connect with stories no matter how big or tragic or small they are, as long as they’re real.
How to tell your story
To tell a compelling story, you need the following ingredients:
Identifiable characters
Hall says: “The knight in shining armour is the character. The sword is the product. The dragon is the problem. The knight uses the sword, but it’s the knight who slays the dragon, not the sword. Take away the knight and you don’t have a story. You just have a piece of metal stuck in a rock.”
Authentic emotion
What does your audience care most about? The success of your story depends on your willingness to share how you felt. You need to be vulnerable, willing to disclose things about yourself that aren’t typically shared at work.
A significant moment
The best stories include a specific moment in time that the audience can see vividly and specifically. In this moment, things change. Show you really understand and know your customer. You might start your example with “I’ll never forget the day when…./the first time I.….” You can chose a transformational moment from outside work. For example a fall-out with a friend. You’ll come across as human and relatable.
Specific details
Rely on details universal to your audience. For example, if you audience are recently appointed staff, include a detail about what it feels like to be part of something you really care about. Look to the shadows for your story. What’s been hard? What were the challenges? Which ‘dragon’ did you slay?’
Know your audience
When deciding on the story you want to tell, understand your audience. Ask yourself:
- What keeps them awake at night?
- What are their problems?
- What impact might this be having on their lives?
- What’s your audience’s demographic?
- Are they similar ages? From the same sector and status?
- Can you use points of reference that will resonate with them?
The impact your service or product could have
- How does your product/service solve their pain or problem?
- How could it make life easier?
- What does the experience of using your product/service feel like for your customers?
- How is using it different?
How life will be once your customers have experienced your service/product
- What is enhanced or improved?
- How do your customers feel?
- What pain points have vanished?
Suggestions for stories
If you’re struggling to come up with examples, here are some prompts.
- Make a list of all the jobs you’ve had, the places you’ve lived, your teachers. Capture those stories.
- Think about firsts. First jobs, dates, awards, first day at school or uni.
- When have you had to be resourceful in order to survive?
- When have you stopped someone from crying?
- What’s the hardest thing you’ve done in work?
- Your proudest moment?
- Whose life is different because of the work/job you do?
- Your most embarrassing moment?
- When someone said you couldn’t do something?
- A holiday experience?
When preparing a story, ask yourself:
- Which story do I need most right now?
- Which objective is most pressing?
- Which will serve me?
- What do I want to get across?
When in doubt, tell a story. Whether that’s in an email, voice message, webinar or meeting, presentation or in response to competency-based questions in an interview. (Tip: For interviews, construct your story using the CARR framework. (Context, Action, Result, Reflection). Context is your example: The Action and Result sections will contain the narrative; use Reflection to capture the transformation that took place. Typical competency-based question examples might include:
“Tell me about a time when you had to overcome a significant challenge”, or “give us an example of how you handled a difficult customer.”
In conclusion
Remember you’re selling yourself as much as anything. You audience will ultimately be persuaded to buy from you. Now write down some of your stories. Decide how and who you’ll share them with. Your stories are unique. If you’re authentic in telling them, your audience can’t fail to be transported.
For more on storytelling, visit Kindra Hall’s Youtube channel.