5 Storytelling Strategies All Leaders Need To Know
JD Vance built his brand on storytelling. His 2016 book Hillbilly Elegy established the senator as a spokesman for a segment of the population often ignored by mainstream political life in the U.S. In the bestselling memoir, Vance writes about the challenges he faced and how his struggles and family influenced his beliefs. Through compelling storytelling he explains who he is and why, revealing an intriguing figure on the American political landscape.
For thought leaders, storytelling is one of the most effective tools to establish who you are and what you have to offer. Much of thought leadership is built around sharing a personal perspective on the trends and challenges that impact your audience. What better way than to do this than through storytelling?
The benefits of integrating effective storytelling are deep and long-lasting. At the most basic level, you foster a deeper connection with your audience. Stories turn complex, abstract ideas into something simpler, more immediate and more personal. With proper story telling, you also transcend a mere transactional exchange with your audience and build a more lasting relationship, based around rapport, transparency and human connection. Stories move, inspire and leave an impact in a way that mere facts or analysis don’t.
All that said, telling an effective story isn’t necessarily easy. The best storytellers practice their craft and rely on several tried and true techniques to get their ideas across. For leaders looking to up their storytelling game, here are a few key tips from the people who do it best.
Five tips on becoming a better storyteller
1. Mine your past
Your past is a foundational component of your storytelling. Dig into your past for stories. This might be an anecdote about your years of early struggle or how the mentorship of another leader led you to the path you’re on. Perhaps you received early encouragement from a teacher or you heard a story that inspired you.
People love stories about underdogs and coming back from disaster. Were you ousted from a company that you then went on to lead, like Steve Jobs and Apple? Was your first book rejected by 36 publishers, like Arianna Huffington’s? These are the kinds of stories that you can draw on to inspire others.
“Leaders often miss out on opportunities to connect with their audience by avoiding sharing personal stories due to fear of exposing their flaws or struggles,” writes Nancy Duarte, author of several books and courses about storytelling and leadership. “For a leader to make a more significant impact, it’s important to dig up and use these stories that most can relate to. We often need help to recall stories that reflect our deep personal beliefs.”
2. Understand the different types of leadership stories
Leadership stories can be broken down into types, and it can be helpful to have at least one of each; each serves a different purpose.
The origin story. This is how you came to be who you are and how you established your company, business or brand. Failure and recovery stories are about overcoming early setbacks that shaped who you are. Both can inspire others as well as demonstrate your own resilience and resourcefulness. An example of a well-told origin story is a video about Shopify’s beginnings. Sara Blakely frequently shares the story of how she failed the LSAT twice and decided to pivot her career path, which led her to invent Spanx.
Values-driven stories. These capture moments when you had to make tough decisions based on your core values and get to the crux of what makes you the kind of leader you are. Howard Schultz based his decision to provide healthcare benefits to all Starbucks employees on his story of growing up in a poor family without access to healthcare.
Turning-point stories. Every thought leader can point to pivotal moments that influenced their career or organization. These stories demonstrate show how you have evolved or changed your approach due to a significant event, showing adaptability and learning.
Reed Hastings, co-founder and chairman of Netflix, often discusses the decision to transition Netflix from a DVD rental service to a streaming platform. This shift came at a time when Netflix was still successful in its original business model, but Hastings foresaw the potential of streaming as the future of entertainment. The decision was risky and required significant investment and restructuring.
3. Consider the audience and content of your message
Different stories will resonate with different audiences, and you should tailor your messages accordingly.
To connect with voters on the campaign trail, JD Vance emphasizes his rural roots and seldom mentions his education at Yale Law School.
While this might appear misleading, Vance is in fact employing a basic tenet of good storytelling. The best thought leaders adapt core stories and messaging to accommodate demands of distinct audience. Take the time to understand who you’re reaching and what they expect to get out of the exchange. Then reverse engineer your message accordingly.
On the campaign trail, vice-presidential candidate JD Vance emphasizes his roots in Ohio and Kentucky.
4. Study story structure and character development
Like a good deck presentation or a ribald dinner anecdote, every story should have a beginning, middle and end. Conflict, character development, and resolution are crucial ingredients to keep your audience engaged.
Use anecdotes, case studies and real-life examples to illustrate your key points. Joseph Campbell’s The Hero With a Thousand Faces will introduce you to primal concepts of storytelling that you can use to better connect with your audience.
One of the most effective story structures is known as the “hero’s journey.” It’s a fundamental trope that underlies everything from ancient myths to Bible stories and even Hollywood blockbusters like Star Wars and Lord of The Rings. A reluctant hero is called forth to address a challenge or crisis. They go on a quest or adventure, overcoming obstacles and fears along the way to achieve a goal. Ultimately, their journey comes full circle and they return home, transformed in profound ways.
5. Learn from thought leaders who are also great storytellers.
Many regard Richard Branson as a top-notch storyteller. One of his most famous stories is about the founding of Virgin Atlantic. Frustrated with a flight cancellation while trying to travel to the Virgin Islands, he chartered a private plane. He convinced other stranded passengers to join him by writing “Virgin Airlines, $39 one way to BVI” on a blackboard. This incident sparked the idea to start his own airline.
Researcher/author Brené Brown shares research and personal anecdotes on vulnerability and courage to foster deeper connections with her audience. One of her most powerful thought leadership stories revolves around her journey into vulnerability research. While studying connection, which she believed was a key to a meaningful life, she discovered that vulnerability was at the core of meaningful connections. This was a turning point where she had to confront her own struggles with vulnerability and imperfection.
There are many thought leaders who have learned the art of storytelling. Look at how they use specific techniques in their stories and you’ll be on your way to becoming a great storyteller yourself.