Lead with a Story summary

Introduction

Lead with a story by Paul Smith Storytelling is a powerful tool for business and leadership. Have you ever been captivated by a story? Imagine a speaker who can hold an entire audience spellbound. This book reveals how to craft narratives that captivate, convince, and inspire.

The art of storytelling predates nearly every other human invention, and it is no surprise. Stories have amazing power to capture our attention, excite our emotions, and transport us. But stories are not just pleasant ways to pass the time or get a thrill, they are also valuable tools. In fact, storytelling was among the first and best ways to impart valuable information and motivate behavior.

That is no less true today than it was during human prehistory. These chapters are about the power of story and the components that make them compelling. Here you will learn why businesses use storytelling to motivate behavior. You will also learn how to incorporate storytelling into your own life and career.

storytelling in modern business

STORYTELLING IN MODERN BUSINESS Storytelling is an important aspect of any successful business. People just love a good story, which is why some of the longest-running shows are soap operas. Whether it is the drama in a soap or a riveting page-turner, we become completely captured by good stories. But it is not only authors and screenwriters who have profited from the art of storytelling.

In fact, a great deal of businesses have as well. Microsoft, FedEx, and Costco each have their own corporate storyteller. Who exactly are these corporate storytellers? Why do these companies hire them?

Stories are critical components of corporate messaging for customers and employees alike. For most of human history, storytelling has been the primary method for imparting knowledge. Before the printing press, most information was shared via oral tradition in the form of stories. Indeed, storytelling offers some unique advantages over other types of communication.

First, anyone can tell and learn from a story. A good story can transfix anyone, regardless of age or education. In addition, stories are memorable. It is quite difficult to remember an isolated fact or statistic.

However, according to psychologist Jerome Bruner, if facts are put into a story, we are 20 times more likely to remember them. Finally, stories can appeal to every type of learner, as there are three types. 40% of us are visual learners, 40% are auditory, and 20% are kinetic. A story's imagery influences visual learners, vocabulary appeals to auditory, and emotions connect with kinetic.

As you can see, stories are a great way to impart knowledge, so businesses incorporate them into strategies. In the next few chapters, we will detail specific business areas that can be improved with a story.