How to Incorporate Storytelling in Your Business Communications (Part 1 of 4)

Part 1 of 4:

The soft skill of storytelling is vital to a professional presentation. Once you learn how to tell a story in a presentation, you can build your reputation significantly. Storytelling can help you connect personally with your audience and make your presentation more memorable.

We consider story telling a powerful tool in your soft skills list/toolbelt. Many people hesitate to tell personal stories. Common self-doubt include:

1. “What does this have to do with anything?”
2. “How can I talk about this in a professional presentation?”
3. “How can I tie this in without sounding weird?”

Here are the easy answers – your story has a LOT to do with your content. Yes, you CAN talk about it in a professional presentation. And there’s an easy way to seamlessly tie the story back without sounding awkward.

That story you’re thinking about sharing – the first time you stood up on a pair of skis, or the way you divvy toys among your children to keep the peace, or how your high school golf experience paid off when you sank a difficult hole-in-one can bring a new depth of personal connection to your presentations.

It will enhance your audience connection, enjoyment, and retention. Let’s take those concerns off your plate! Here’s step 1…

Story Telling as a Business Communications Skill

Step 1: What is the meaning/ metaphor of your story?: This is where the “what does this have to do with anything?” in my presentation concerns get addressed. Every good story is more than just the sum of its parts – and finding the overarching metaphor or meaning of your story is the key to finding in which presentation it may work. Once you’ve structured your story, ask yourself “what’s the big idea”? For example, the story about your golf hole-in-one might be a tale of perseverance paying off after years and years of trying. The number of presentations where this big idea could apply are endless. So, if you think that golf has nothing to do with the demo presentation, you’re wrong. The meaning or metaphor is bigger than the details.