Member Article

Storytelling as a business technique

Being a good storyteller would not, on the face of it, be listed as one of the top 10 requirements of a business manager. It just does not sit right.

But if we substituted storytelling for being a good communicator, that would be a different thing.

The top judges in the land use simple storytelling techniques to cut away from all the legal jargon to ensure the jury understand the key issues.

As people, we connect and communicate better with those that tell stories. Storytelling creates an emotional connection with an audience and opens up the listener’s ears to not just your message, but what makes you tick. This enables them to relate to you and listen, understand and remember the communication.

We all want people to listen more closely to us, from our partners and friends to our employees and colleagues. A manager who keeps his employees at arm’s length or fails to cut through the corporate dogma will find they have a harder time of being understood.

However, behind every story there needs to be a carefully crafted message.

The most effective messages, whether you’re preparing a team meeting or simply writing an email, are those that are targeted and focused on achieving your goals. A common pitfall business owners and office managers make is not being clear in their own minds about what it is they want to achieve.

This can then impact on employees and the team around you as it can become unclear on the exact targets that need to be met in order to accomplish the business goal.

Although solid communication is the key to a successful and thriving business, over-sharing everything that you can possibly think of is a sure fire way to confuse colleagues and employees alike.

This widespread blunder stems from not having a clear objective of what you want to achieve. The best communication is concise. To break the rambling cycle, keep in mind your business goals and target audience, and use this as a filter to find the messages that matter most.

It is vital you not only know your audience inside out, but that you can speak from their perspective. Many managers make the mistake of speaking from their point of view, often neglecting the true needs of the audience.

Sometimes there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to do your job well, never mind bother with the nitty gritty necessity of assembling facts and data. But without the relevant research to back your well-formed conclusions, you might as well sit twiddling your thumbs for all the use your data-free messages are worth. For most businesses, the most compelling information we can share with our employees, colleagues or audience are solid facts that support all of the hard work you do.

Being mindful of the quality of your messages will not only aid your business to reach its full potential, but ensure that you reap the rewards of straightforward communication.

To get your story right, please contact us via www.bradleyomahoney.co.uk Or follow us on Twitter: @BradleyOMahoney

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Bradley O’Mahoney Public Relations .