Last month’s sad news of the loss of Steve Jobs has inevitably prompted much discourse about the charismatic pioneer.

 

Renowned as one of the great storytellers of our time, there’s no doubt that Steve Jobs knew how to captivate an audience, but more importantly he knew that what had begun as ‘his story’ would, before long, become ‘everyone’s story’, retold with ever increasing passion and enthusiasm by Apple employees and customers alike.

We think that’s simply because the best stories just get better each time they’re told and the best storytellers just get better at telling them!

Apple undoubtedly has an exceptional story to tell – who wouldn’t want to talk about iconic objects of desire at the cutting edge of design and innovation? Part of their story has, of course, also been about Steve Jobs himself and the determined nature of his leadership.

There may well be elements of ‘urban myth’ in some of the Apple tale but, in the end do we mind if it results in giving us a real shared sense of their culture and style and a taste of some of their success?

 

We all, individually and as organisations, have stories inside us. In case you hadn’t already guessed, storytelling has been the focus of much of the work we’ve been doing lately. Successful business leaders understand the value of storytelling as part of a wider communications strategy, often attributing employee engagement, brand strength and customer loyalty to their ability to tell and share stories.

 

• Our brains are programmed for stories; they are part of our native language, we think, plan, decide, dream and converse in stories
• Effective stories have both ‘thinking’ and ‘feeling’ elements; we remember what we feel
• Stories help to connect people; through shared norms and values
• Stories are more about the ‘pull’ than the ‘push’; enticing listeners to participate rather than just telling them what to think
• Stories are memorable; we become part of the journey

 

 

It’s wrong to assume that storytellers are rare and exceptional people, we’ve helped teams from a range of businesses re-discover their storytelling talents, and once you’ve begun to ‘tune into’ stories you soon realise that everyone has one to tell.

We’re helping clients to tell all kinds of narratives; who they are, what they stand for, what they’ve learnt from the past and what their goals are for the future…the list goes on. And to tell them with verve, creativity and inspiration too!

 

Stories are often needed at that critical point in a change initiative or organisational transformation, when the top team has worked hard to develop their own leadership capability and vision of success, and the next levels of management need reaching out to.

When we talk about cascading the ‘big’ messages out into the organisation and ensuring they resonate with everyone at every level, we’re often talking about sharing the story of the journey. Your people across the whole organisation need to feel personally touched, to be given confidence and inspiration to help them leap into action and play their parts to the full in the journey to shared success.

 

Working with the top three tiers of leadership and management of a market leading global information services company recently, the aim was to develop a narrative that captured not only their heritage as an organisation and their vision for the future, but also the spirit of their journey.

As simple as it sounds getting it right wasn’t as easy as the team first thought and the discussions generated at each stage of the process were at times intense but also rich in debate and original thinking. The final version was a powerful mix; professional, genuine and most importantly human. It’s fair to say that everyone in the room, around 40 people, were ‘blown away’ by both the story and the story telling – an impressive end to what was an extraordinary day. 

 

With customers becoming ever more savvy thanks to the advent of social media, the stories we tell can be scrutinised and critiqued with almost immediate effect. The most powerful stories are of course honest and authentic, but most importantly they are ‘owned’ by those telling them. Telling your story doesn’t have to be difficult, the trick is in helping others make it their story and to recognise their responsibility in keeping it alive.

If you’re interested in developing your story and want to know how we can help please call us on 01603 507236 or email me at jo.smallwood@maier.co.uk.