In our April 2012 Storytelling for Business newsletter we celebrate 15 years of helping people deliver their best stories by gathering together a few of the best from past editions.

Download Storytelling for Business April 2012

In our New Year edition of Storytelling for Business we reflect on the timeless power of a winning smile, four key principles shared by “lucky” people, three quick fixes for better presentations and we ask “What have we learned in 2,067 years?”

Storytelling-for-Business-January-2012

In our October 2011 Storytelling for Business newsletter, Barry and Sally discuss the 100th birthday of one of history’s most notable story-spotters, recount a meeting with a hero, and tell a story about storytelling workshops for two creative agencies in Dubai. They also answer the question: “How long should I speak for?”

Storytelling for Business October 2011

Whilst travelling on coaches around the south island of New Zealand, we were given some brilliant lessons on “good communication practice” by our drivers, Dave, Pete and Richard.

For the record, the scenery there is stunning and vast – but after a few hours can become monotonous. And if your driver likes the sound of his own voice, you can be drowned by a sea of words – some of interest but most not. So as a passenger you learn to tune in and out to the events around you but if you’re not careful you risk missing the best bits. It struck us this is exactly what can happen to an audience when faced with a lengthy, fact-filled presentation.

So back to Dave, Pete and Richard – what made them special communicators?

Firstly, they recognised we had a lot of ground to cover. Secondly, as experts they knew when to alert us to important sights so we could take photos to refer to later. Thirdly, they understood we couldn’t remember much of what they said unless they engaged with us. How did they do this? By telling us some of their personal stories – of sheep farming and shearing, of a new wood burner, of being taught to hunt and fish by a father, of a wife’s family argument over land ownership and much more. Because they were personal, we can remember them. But the key difference was that each of their stories made a point to help us better understand their country of New Zealand.

The power of storytelling in business presentations works exactly the same way. The presenter needs to tell a story to help make the key point of the presentation and in so doing leave the detail in the document for later examination – rather like those photos we’d taken on our trip.

What about the possum? On our coach journey we had been told a lot about the problems they were having with possums – an unwanted import from Australia. We had mentioned we had not seen any live ones – only dead ones on the road. We were told that they loved coming out at night to warm up on the hot roads and as a result were killed by passing cars.

So, why did the possum cross the road? To visit his flat mate of course!

Our programmes are carefully planned but we’re never inflexible. Like all good learning experiences, we know our objectives and outcomes before we start, have a programme of exercises to follow but we respond to the momentum in each group of delegates and adapt the workshop accordingly.

We deliver minimum theory and maximise the actionable practical learning time. Our delegates are kept busy – they work independently and in small teams – they are asked to work outside their comfort zone but within a highly supportive environment of colleagues and trainers. They get video’d – a guaranteed way of gaining better self-awareness.

Our delegates leave our workshops feeling confident, empowered and motivated and can’t wait to illustrate their newly improved communication skills to their colleagues, bosses and clients alike.
But don’t take our word for it as a delegate from Synovate said; “I have never been in a training session where I have seen so much self-improvement in a day”.