Strategic storytelling is the communication of ideas using a narrative structure to persuade, inspire, or inform. It is important for all of us seeking to communicate well since stories are how humans receive and remember information. Dry facts have their place, but should be supplementary to an engaging narrative that takes the focus of any message.
We all know this. Have you ever sat through the lectures of an ineffectual teacher who droned on about data points without ever hearkening you to remember a thing? That person lacked storytelling capacity. How about the teacher who could make any topic interesting and memorable? Indeed, that was the one who knew how to craft the mundane into the remarkable.
Learning and exercising this skill is equally important to all of us who hope to get our point across and move others to action.
Ageless Wisdom
Christians should be especially aware of this reality. Respect for this design is why the Lord presents narrative stories to demonstrate the importance of all the commands He gives. It is not enough to plainly tell someone to do something or to abstain from it. You must also explain to them why with relevant examples which they can see themselves in.
To elaborate, this is why the Lord does not just forbid coveting your neighbor’s wife (Exodus 20:17). Instead, he gives that prohibition, and provides numerous expositions which demonstrate the negative consequences unto those who do not listen. One such case is David’s lusting after Bathsheba, which leads to an affair, which then leads to a pregnancy the two are not prepared to come to terms with (2 Samuel 11). The consequences of the aforementioned sins lead David to deceive and conspire to murder his neighbor, Uriah.
This story demonstrates the cascading disasters that come from failing to heed the Lord’s command. The narrative is potent in one’s memory, far more than any simple admonition. One can say “do not commit adultery'” until he is blue in the face, but it is the real story that commits such lessons to our core.
What We’ve Known All Along
To no surprise, contemporary wisdom would echo the same sentiments from times of old. Modern research shows what we have always known. Humans can remember a remarkable amount of fine details, provided they are woven together into cohesive narratives. That is what made the difference between the two aforementioned professors. The one with the storytelling skills will produce the most successful students.
Storytelling is an effective way to communicate ideas and get people to remember them because it is the way our brains are designed to process information. Not only that, but it can also be important in getting people to care. CEOs and entrepreneurs are often heard extolling the virtue of storytelling for business success. A good narrative is what makes you memorable among your competitors and establishes an emotional investment in your clients. You may have the best product or idea to date, but you must still convince others it is so.
Don’t Fix What Isn’t Broken
I can certainly attest to the power of storytelling in my own learning and commitments in life. Why am I able to remember the lessons our Lord teaches in His Holy Scriptures. Well, does He not couch them so eloquently in timeless stories which speak to the heart? Why yes, He does. And so, the learning comes quite naturally with His Word when you study to show thyself approved.
With that said, if strategic storytelling is a good enough strategy for God, I would say it is definitely good enough for you and me. After all, I spoke of my own experience in statistics classes with two different professors: one who could make the subject interesting and memorable, and another who could not. I have no doubt many of you in the hearing of these words have had much the same experience in life if you are more than a few years old.
Wait Not For Tomorrow
With all that said, how does one go about such things? It really is a simple thing, though not something anyone would accomplish without a plan. Like anything strategic, you must have practiced what you intend to do before the time comes to do it. Let us discuss what that looks like.
- Decide what message you intend to convey
- Are you persuading, informing, reminding, etc.?
- Consider your target audience and their reception
- Outline your story points
- Introduction, body, and conclusion
- Approximate word count/speaking time for each point
- Practice and refine before delivery
- Consider both verbal and non-verbal delivery
I would be remiss if I did not say that strategic storytelling is much like writing any other speech or essay. You may simply use a condensed version of the same strategy for those things. The key is to avoid walking into important conversations with the intention to discuss things you have not practiced explaining beforehand.
Just as you do not want to be thinking about what to do in the middle of combat, but rather, want to have practiced what you will need to do beforehand; so too do you not want to be thinking of what to say in the middle of a conversation. Instead, you want everything to be thought of and practiced well ahead of time.
An Example to Leave You With
While the whole process from inception to delivery would go beyond the scope of this article, I would like to conclude with an example of strategic storytelling. For now, I will share just the end result. If I were endeavoring to convince an adult to read more who has expressed frustration and discouragement with the activity due to difficulty he has experienced, I would say something like this:
[Begin with soft voice and hands folded]
“I know reading is difficult. It is an exercise for the mind, and like any exercise for the body, it is overwhelming at first. When you push your muscles in a way they are not used to, they respond with burning and soreness. So too it is when you push the mind.
[Tilt head and point right index finger up]
Yet, have you ever stuck through an exercise routine or other rigorous activity which pushed back against you at first? And what happened then? Did it remain difficult forever, or did you eventually grow to handle it with ease?
[Smile and give a cross-sweeping hand gesture]
I know for me, when I push new bounds with my muscles, they falter at first. Yet, it it is not long before they come back stronger and what once was hard soon is done with ease.
[Lift voice and use an upsweeping hand gesture]
I promise you, it is the same with reading. It is an exercise for your mind, and so it tests your limits at first, pushing you down with its rigor, just as would any test of physical strength.
[Draw out voice and shake head gently; optional hand wave or finger wag]
But that hardship does not last forever. If you keep on reading, your mind will grow stronger just like your muscles, and it will not be long before passages which pained you before come to give you no pause. I assure you of that, for it was the same for me.
[Smile and make eye contact upon closing statement]
None of us are born strong readers. That is something we make of ourselves. You can do the same. I believe in you.”
Now, Go Forth
None of us humans are born competent at anything worth doing. We all must start somewhere, and every journey begins with the smallest steps. Be bold in telling your story, and fear not to share it.
All Pensive Warrior blog posts are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The Pensive Warrior 