A recent conversation with a corporate client has me thinking about storytelling.
This question is coming up for me:
Why is it important to feel comfortable sharing short stories that engage people?
Here’s one reason...
Once upon a time...
Just kidding.
No, but really.
When you get comfortable sharing stories that connect with your audience, whether you work in nonprofit development, communications, marketing, leadership, sales, advocacy, or another area, you are better equipped to form connections with people.
When you can relate to someone and feel like you know something about them, you are more likely to feel comfortable with them. That sense of knowing helps establish rapport and trust.
Think about the difference between talking with an acquaintance you’ve had positive conversations with and starting a conversation with a stranger. There’s already some familiarity with the acquaintance. You have something to build from.
Stories can help us move from stranger to acquaintance, or from acquaintance to something deeper.
But there’s another side of storytelling that I’ve become increasingly interested in: story listening.
As a Certified Holistic Narrative Assessment Professional with OneLifeTools, I’ve experienced hundreds of times the power of combining storytelling with skilled story listening.
Story listening is a skill many people have never heard of. I hadn’t either until I met Mark Franklin and Rich Feller, Ph.D., Past President of the National Career Development Association, at the NCDA Global Annual Conference in Chicago, where we were all facilitating sessions.
Skillful story listening involves knowing what kinds of questions to ask to help people reflect on their lived experiences and draw out insights, patterns, and possibilities.
Once I learned about story listening and pursued education, mentorship, and experience to strengthen my skills, it changed the way I coach and facilitate.
Whether I’m facilitating an experience for a room full of 50 managers or coaching a director one-on-one, I’m continually seeing the value of helping people tap into the wisdom contained in their own experiences and stories.
There is power in being able to tell a story.
And there is power in knowing how to listen for what a story might reveal.
How does storytelling, or story listening, factor into your daily life or work?
If you’re interested in exploring how story listening could be useful for your organization, team, or business, reach out. I’d love to hear from you, even if it’s just a sentence about what you’re curious about. Reply or send a note to me here.
-Erica Mattison MPA, JD
Executive Coach & Facilitator
P.S. Most of the photos I use in my newsletter, website, and social media are ones I have taken. In this newsletter, I include a photo of an origami flower. It was a rainy day at a charming library in Rhode Island. This small piece of 3D artwork caught my eye, and now learning how to make a paper flower, even if it’s simpler than this lovely one, has made its way onto my to do list.
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