TELL ME A STORY AND I’LL SHOW YOU RESULTS
Last month I began to write about the power of
‘storytelling’ in our lives and in our businesses.
I’d like to continue by giving you some ideas of how to
collect stories from your team members with the intent that
you will see tangible results from it.
Often, it seems more difficult when we sit down and try to
think about ‘doing’ storytelling, but as with most things,
it will get easier if you practice.
As I mentioned last month: Storytelling is involved in
most of our interactions and transactions throughout our
daily life. We tell stories with our words, our
pictures, our body language, our gestures, and even our
silence. that will make a big difference in your firm’s
performance and relationships.
My definition of storytelling would be:
Storytelling is the art of communicating and connecting.
Who among us doesn’t want to be a better communicator? And
who doesn’t want to connect better and deeper with clients,
prospects, team members or even family and friends for that
matter?
It may help, especially in the beginning, to organize this
storytelling visually (on paper, whiteboard or onscreen).
Putting different components together, deleting this, adding
that. It may help break down the ‘mystery’ of storytelling
and help you immerse yourself in your story.
You may want to look at this from the point of view of my
team members have stories, my clients have stories, the firm
has stories, etc. Who’s got stories, which stories are
important to tell and how can we do that well?
>From her book, “Wake Me Up When the Data is Over”
Lori Silverman gives us some techniques from some of the
most successful companies in the world who employ
storytelling tactics.
- To help employees internalize your customer service
philosophy, have them tell stories about WHY they chose
their profession.
-Assume that employees are already telling stories about how
they handled customers. Find ways to bring out these stories
and acknowledge them. And train managers and supervisors to
be on the lookout for them.
-Share stories about outstanding customer service to inspire
others to provide similar service.
-Sponsor contests that reward the best customer service
stories.
-Publish and share your stories with customers so they
become ‘part’ of your organization.
-Encourage customers to share stories about their
experiences with you.
“In the world of finance, storytelling plays a vital role.”
Dan Hendrix, president and CEO of Interface, the world’s
largest manufacturer of modular carpet and a leader in the
sustainable business movement.
“Stories are vital for giving meaning to numbers. They
provide context and capture people’s imagination.”
Dorothea Brennan, board member Gaylord Hospital.
Best regards,
Debra Dowdell
Debra@PowerYourPractice.com
Bus: 905-951-9773
Toll-free: 1-888-272-2735
www.poweryourpractice.com
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