Story Telling
As a founder, CEO, GM, or manager you will often have what are called ‘Broadcast meetings’ or situations that call for you to spread the gospel of your company to a new recruit, partner, or existing team members. I had previously told business stories when writing or speaking in front of an audience, but I hadn't thought about the value of planning stories for usage outside of these conventional business storytelling situations.
There are ten narratives that every leader has to keep in their toolbox. All of these could be helpful in broadcast meetings:
Where we came from ( the Founding Story above)
Why we can't stay here (a case for change)
Where we're going (a vision story)
How we're going to get there (a strategy story)
What we believe (a values story)
Who we serve (a customer story)
What we do for our customers (a sales case-study story)
How we're different from our competitors (a marketing story)
Why I lead the way I do (a leadership philosophy story)
Why you should want to work here (a recruiting story)
Here are some tips to guide you as you craft narratives for any of the use cases above
Do open with a scene. People hear hundreds of stories a day — make yours stand out from the first sentence.
Do focus on a single story. Juggling narratives adds a layer of complexity that most of us cannot articulate gracefully and it will lead to confusion.
Do make sure that your story has a clear beginning, middle, and end. You can tell your story out of order — for instance, opening with a scene from a stressful moment to build suspense before jumping back into chronology — but you always want to make sure your story has each of these elements. Skipping any single one will confuse your audience and make your story feel incomplete.
Don’t get bogged down in detail. Having too much detail can mean that your audience will have trouble understanding what the most significant elements are.
Don’t use thesaurus words. The language should sound natural to you and be pretty informal — like conversing with your grandmother informal, rather than cursing or speaking in front of friends.
Do use vivid, interesting words and varied sentence structure. Being casual doesn’t mean the writing shouldn’t be good or interesting!
But don’t use emotional language: I was happy; I was sad. Instead, let an action depict the emotional state.
And don’t use clichés — common, predictable, overused language. Avoid phrases like: I need to be true to myself. Time heals all wounds. Every cloud has a silver lining. Little did I know.
Do deliver for impact. Prioritize the...pause. Act it out. Hit the punch. Stay in the bit. Commit.
Do create the aha out of the assumptions that other people make about you based on the story.
Ask them to fill in the blank: “If I’m being honest, you seem like the kind of person who _____.”
Do make analogies. Analogies emphasize the absurdity of an action or circumstance by contrasting it with something completely unrelated but similarly outlandish.
Do use contrast. Vary the pitch, tone, inflection, and pacing of your delivery.
Do present yourself in a positive light. Either your story or your reflection must ultimately show you to be a person who is actively trying to get better, correct errors, move past setbacks, or strengthen areas where you are weak.
