Leaders Telling Stories
Storytelling Contributes to Effective Communication in Organizations
Mar 12, 2009
Storytelling may have become the preserve of talk show hosts and professional performers, but managers don’t need a Ph.D. in storytelling to tell stories that engage employees. Storytelling is a way to connect with staff and improve workplace communications.
Here are four tips to facilitate the use of storytelling in a management setting.
Learn to Listen
The effective manager takes time to listen to employees. Understanding their concerns, even if he doesn’t always agree with them, makes it possible for the manager to narrate stories that are meaningful and relevant.
By practising deep listening and repeating back what he has heard employees share, the manager assures them of his attention. It is not uncommon for an employee to experience a sudden awakening as she hears her manager repeat a story she has just narrated; she appreciates her experience in a different light. New insights and mutual respect unfold from this sharing.
Use Stories from Personal Experience
People's personal lives are rich depositories of story and life lessons that any employee can relate to. If an employee is struggling with a customer or another department, a manager could tell a story culled from her volunteer experience. The story might demonstrate how to work through a seemingly intransigent problem with team members or people in other parts of an organization.
When a manager narrates a story about surmounting impediments in an organizational setting, it’s like flipping a switch. Listeners think about the times they’ve been in adversarial relationships or come up against barriers. They then consider what would happen if they were willing to shift from a particular position to seek a common solution instead.
Be Genuine
Coaching sessions offer managers the opportunity to engage staff in learning and promote accountability. Not all of a manager’s stories may put him in a flattering light, but then real storytelling from real managers shouldn’t be the stuff of fiction. Use stories to illustrate effective and ineffective ways to handle situations at the office; model accountability by being genuine with stories of mistakes and what was learned from them.
A wisdom story format is an easy way to narrate a story: a story about a situation, what happened to change it and how the situation concluded. The narrator’s focus is on progress not perfection as he owns what changed in his outlook.
Use Stories for Sharing and Capturing Organizational Knowledge
If one member of a team is feeling stuck, other members can exchange stories about how they’ve solved similar problems in the past. A manager might ask employees, “When you faced a situation like this, what did you do?” He plays the role of facilitator while employees share stories and ideas about how to resolve a challenge.
This learning among peers has other advantages. The storytelling gets at innate or tacit knowledge team members possess; knowledge that is both technical and experiential, and that otherwise might not have come to light. New knowledge is generated out of the discussion, and is of immediate benefit to both the team and organization. Drawing out this information makes the most of members’ strengths and affirms their individual contributions.
The average office is impacted by the labor shortage and economic crisis. People are working in stressful situations and putting in longer hours on the job. Storytelling enhances meaningful connections between employees and promotes learning, team cohesiveness and sense of purpose. It is the antidote to the digital workplace, and the bar to participation is low: just tell a story.
 |
