Just Story It

What a great article! It is really focused on 6 steps that create the conditions for your ideas to spread.

And guess what -- storytelling and/or story triggers play a key role. 

This post, written by Marina Krakovsky, talks about the new book by Jonah Berger called Contagious: Why Things Catch On.

Berger points out that Malcolm Gladwell in his book the Tipping Point is only half right; and that Chip Heath, author of Made To Stick really is only focusing on memorability. Both authors make incredibly valuable points and share valid insights.

But Berger focuses on what makes messages get passed along to others. His 6 elements are STEPPS: Social currency, Triggers, Emotion, Public, Practical value, and Stories.

I love the point he makes about stories and emotions. Just because your story contains emotions does not mean it will get passed on.  "We'll remember the story because it's sad," Berger explains, "but we’re not going to share it."

Will reading Berger's book and applying his STEPPS make you rich and famous? Maybe not. As he says, "But will applying them make it more likely that 10 people will hear about it rather than 9, or that your sales will increase by 20 or 40%? Certainly.”

There's a lot more to this article, so go read it.

Thank you Marina for writing such a great review. And I look forward to reading Berger's book.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it 

I love this post! The story kept me engaged, it sparked many similar memories in me, and it's message is right on.

I'm teaching an MBA course right now in business communication/storytelling skills at my students just completed the assignment of creating both success and failure stories about themselves to use in job interviews, etc. They freaked. It's tough enough sometimes to talk right about your successes. Even tougher to open up and share your failures.

What I parlicularly like about what story colleague Limor Shiponi did was teach us how powerful failure stories can be -- and how to tell them in a way that demonstrates our value. That's the real key.

I've admired Limor's work for years --she's an amazing deep thinker about both storytelling and story in business. And I would like to point out that Limor is also one of the designers/speakers at the May 2, 2013 Storyevolution Conference that I scooped yesterday. This article gives us a peek into what is in story for us at that gathering!

Failure stories are one of the most powerful a business can use. And oh how I wish story professionals told more failure stories. Like the time I bombed at a prestigious MBA school :) My lesson: tell them what they really need to know about storytelling; don't try to fit what you know into what they think they want to hear under the guise of "being relevant".

OK -- here's how to read this article:

1. As a business professional who want to master failure stories so that even these stories can propel your business forward.
2. As a story professional who wants to learn lessons from others in the field.

This is a refreshing article -- and a topic sore neglected in our field. I hope you get a lot out of this article because it is a real gem!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it 

Storytelling is never mentioned in this article, but it is all about storytelling in business.

I so appreciate the author's point that being perfect -- giving that perfect presentation; telling that story absolutely perfectly -- has changed. Being a recovering perfectionist, I say "Thank heavens!"

For years as I've worked with leaders I have practically abandoned the perfect polished story, realizing that authenticity and realism will go much farther.

So you flub up a bit in telling a story. Your audience will appreciate your humanism.

As the author Rohit Bhargava says, just be yourself. You will have more fun and make a bigger impact.

There are lots of good insights and take-aways from this article so go take the time to read it. It's short and a nice emotional boost. Enjoy!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling atwww.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Awhile ago I curated the research & article by Dr. Phillip Mazzocco and Melanie Green about Persuasion in Legal Settings: What's the Story? where they talk about when a story persuades, and when it does not. Here's the link: http://www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it?q=legal+settings 

Now here is an article -- based on their research -- that summarizes the 6 elements of better stories. 

The article is written for bloggers but applies to us all. I particulary like elements 2 (realism), 3 (delivery), 4 (imagery), and 6 (context).

Delivery is learned through practice -- and working on your oral storytelling skills is critical whether you are writing your stories, or meeting with prospects/customers face-to-face. I like the examples of good delivery shared here.

I see a lot of articles about imagery as it relates to visual storytelling, but little about developing visual language skills (metaphors, analogies, etc.). There are some great tips here on story imagery.

And context is king. If you can't change your stories to suit the context you find yourself in, you are most likely dead in the water. I like what the author, Gregory Ciotti, says about context and buildilng trust.

So go grab the insights from this article and keep sharing/practicing your biz stories!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling atwww.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Hey folks -- are you using any of these buzzwords in you biz stories?

If so, then you might want to STOP! Some of the candidates might surprise you. Some I bet you will cheer for being the winners.

In any event, here's some Friday Fun for you -- now go vote for the ones you want banned!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Storytelling colleague Limor Shiponi from Isreal has done it again -- shared a slice of real life experience working with stories within a company.

This is a short story with lots to think about -- namely how working with stories in organizations opens up meaningful conversations. And usually what is shared would have remained hidden or unsaid.

And the other piece to think about in this story is how leadership can change and grow just by opening the door to storytelling. In this case, working on a company blog.

And then the last place to reflect on with this article is the role of the story practitioner. As you read Limor's story, what qualities and skills were present that created a positive outcome? 

And then of course, the story itself proves how such a short piece can pack such a rich punch.

If anyone is interested in digging into narrative practice, experiencing how complexity can be unwound with short but rich stories, and how all of this impacts both business and leadership, then click through the link at the end of the article to the Storyevolution conference coming up in May in Washington DC. Limor will be facilitating.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelilng at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it 

I couldn't agree more. I'm working right now with a client on measures, data, metrics, standards, and figuring out how to tell the story in ways that can influence changes in behavior.

Who said storytelling was only about sharing experiences? It is also about finding data, shaping that into a shareable story, and then delivering the story the data is telling you so people can be influenced.

Here's an article that speaks directly to those issues -- and gives advice for how to bring data to life, and tell its story.

What I like it that it starts with "The Art of the Question". In other words, the data you will use depends on the questions you are asking. Get the questions right and the story begins to unfold.

There are other tips here that are also helpful. For all you big data-heads out there -- or for anyone confronted with a lot of data -- read this article so you can start figuring out the story to share.

And thank you for Giuseppe Mauriello for finding and pointing me to this post!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it 

What a great article about influencing, moving people to action, and sales.

Biz storytelling is all about that. Yet there's ambivalence around it too. Who wants to be a snarky salesman?!

Enter Dan Pink, one of my favorite authors, and his new book To Sell is Human. The author of this article, Heidi Grant Holvorson, reviews Pink's book and makes fabulous points on her own.

As Halvorson points out, Pink says that moving people (selling, persuading, influencing) is an essential component of nearly everyone's job in the modern workplace.

Doing so well and effectively without being a slime ball means making sure the ideas and products with genuine merit do the moving.

This helps avoid the traps of manipulation and intimidation. 

I really like Halvorson's insights, her willingness to tackle the stereotypes of sales, and bring us Pink's latest work.

I've commented before on transactional storytelling (using stories for sales) -- not because I think it is bad, but because I don't want us to lose sight that there is much more to business storytelling than at the level of mere transaction.

Pink, I think, helps us frame influence and moving people to action as we tell our stories in sales/influence/persuasion functions (these are not synonymous terms, BTW) -- in a way that really works. Now I certainly want to get his book to add to the others of his in my library.

Anyway, thought you should see this article. Lots of good material here (and it is not long). I hope you gain more comfort with sales and storytelling, and be able to conduct your influence/sales work in your business or organization with more confidence.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling atwww.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Can you share a digital story and have it go viral?

Maybe yes, maybe no. To help us figure this out is a new tool that analyzes videos that have gone viral, determines the elements that made it go viral, and share the results with us. Along with a whole bunch of analytics.

I took a brief look at the app and played with it a bit. And I think it is really cool.

I chose the characteristics I was looking for in a viral video and then an example popped up so I could watch it. And learn. And gain some ideas/inspiration. Pretty neat.

And I got a total kick out of the (Welcome to) The Motherhood video!

Don't know if this tool will really result in a better ability to make viral videos, but I certainly think it will help. Go play. Have fun. Your next video just may go viral!

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling atwww.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

The author David Lee does a great job here explaining not only why stories should be used during employee orientation trainings, but which stories will lead to participants having a successful experience.

And begin to build pride in the company they have just joined, and increase their personal integrity.

Orienting new employees to the company is one of the place where all great corporate storytelling begins -- yet is mostly underutilized or ignored.

So Lee gives us both a reminder to not forget this area for applying business storytelling, and tips for which stories to tell.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Love this post about consciously choosing which stories to tell that is slanted toward organizations.

This article comes from Britain, with British references. And some of the examples given are British companies. Hooray! We need more international examples. 

Sustainable storytelling for the author here, Ed Gillespie, is all about telling stories that sustain us. 

When I use the term 'sustainable storytelling' I mean paying attention to all that is required (i.e. structures and processes) within a business to keep storytelling alive as a sustainable activity over time.

Semantics aside, I really like what Gillespie has to say:

"...stories that empower us as heroes and capture our imaginations inspire and galvanise us into action more effectively than psychologically passive-aggressive narratives that try to guilt or brow-beat us into change."

So true, so true. Leaders and marketers -- take a lesson here.

Enjoy digging into all the links in this article and the examples of sustainable storytelling via Great Britain.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling at www.scoop.it/t/just-story-it

Here is a well-written article on cognitive research and its link to behavior change and storytelling.

Whether in business, or as a nonprofit, often we share our stories in order to change behavior. At the lowest level, this is 'buy my stuff.' At the highest level this is about creating greater satisfaction, awareness, and positive social change.

This article explains the 7 steps cognitive research has determined influence our behavior. And these are strikingly similar to storytelling:

1) Interrupt the Pattern -- start with the everyday but then something happens and we are in a different place/situation

2) Create Comfort -- add familiary elements

3) Lead the Imagination -- have a plot plus use visual language

4) Shift the Feeling -- from one state to another, using turning points

5) Satisfy the Critical Mind -- include data

6) Change the Associations -- from undesirable to desirable

7) Take Action -- what do you want people to do?

The author, Douglas Van Praet, also shares examples with us to illustrate his points.

It's an easy yet meaty read and I think you will get a lot out of it.

This review was written by Karen Dietz for her curated content on business storytelling atwww.scoop.it/t/just-story-it