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Corporate storytelling has become a buzzword, with countless experts offering their take on how to craft the perfect narrative. As a result, many people find themselves overwhelmed and intimidated by the seemingly complex art of storytelling. They fall into the trap of overcomplicating their stories, believing that they need to be dramatic, emotionally charged, and perfectly polished to be effective. So it’s time to figure out how to stop over complicating things.
Storytelling doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, the most powerful stories are often the simplest ones – those that resonate with the audience on a personal level and forge genuine connections. So, why do we tend to overcomplicate storytelling, and how can we simplify our approach to create more engaging, impactful narratives?
The storytelling industrial complex
One of the main culprits is what Rob Biesenbach, a corporate communications pro, actor, and author, calls the “storytelling industrial complex.” With the rise of storytelling as a crucial skill in business, there has been a proliferation of complex methodologies and multi-step processes that can make the craft seem more daunting than it needs to be.
As Rob points out on “The Business Storytelling Show,” “People overcomplicate it. I suspect some people want to make it as complicated as possible, so you have to hire them to unravel the mysteries of storytelling.”
This approach not only makes storytelling seem more difficult than it is but also discourages people from attempting to tell their own stories.
Unrealistic expectations
Another factor contributing is the tendency for people to compare themselves to professional storytellers and set unrealistic expectations. In today’s media-saturated world, we are constantly exposed to gripping tales from TED talks, Oscar-worthy films, and bestselling novels. When faced with these polished, emotionally charged narratives, it’s easy to feel intimidated and doubt our own storytelling abilities.
However, as Rob reminds us, “You don’t have to knock it out of the ballpark every time. A story can actually be just very, very simple.”
By lowering our expectations and realizing that not every story needs to be a tearjerker or a side-splitting comedy, we can take some of the pressure off ourselves and focus on crafting authentic, relatable narratives.
The myth of the dramatic story
Sone people also believe that stories need to be overly dramatic or emotional to be effective. While it’s true that emotion plays a crucial role in storytelling, it doesn’t mean that every story needs to be a rollercoaster ride of feelings.
As Rob explains, “Most business stories are not really designed to make people cry or fall out of their chairs. But if you can appeal to some level of emotion, even in a modest way of getting people feeling feelings of pride, confidence, trust, appealing to ego, and of course, negative emotions of feeling insecurities, fears of getting behind and things like that.”
Even small emotional connections can make a story resonate with an audience. Avoid overcomplicating narratives and focus on finding relatable, authentic moments that spark a genuine response.
Read next: What makes good storytelling? 7 Lessons from the Experts
The power of simplicity
So, how to stop overcomplicating things? The answer lies in embracing simplicity. Instead of getting bogged down in complex methodologies and trying to craft the perfect, emotionally charged tale, we should focus on finding relatable examples and understanding the audience.
As Rob suggests, “Think of story as an example. Surely you can think of an example.”
Mine your own experiences and look for instances that illustrate the point. This simplifies the storytelling process but also makes stories more relatable to our audience.
Another key aspect of simplifying storytelling is understanding the needs and preferences of our audience.
As Rob emphasizes, “Storytelling, as with any communication, always starts with the audience. You have to know who you’re talking to. Who are they? What do or don’t they know? What are their objections? How about their mood?” By tailoring stories to the specific needs and interests of our listeners, we can create narratives that resonate on a deeper level without the need for excessive complexity.
Spotting stories everywhere
Finding the right stories to tell can be a challenge early on. However, as Rob points out, stories are all around us – we just need to know how to spot them.
“It’s really just mining your experience for examples and just being aware of these stories,” Rob explains. “They are all around us just waiting to be discovered.”
By developing a keen eye for potential stories and keeping a record of them, we can build a repository of examples to draw from when crafting our narratives.
Rob suggests focusing on your own experiences and looking for instances that relate to your key messages. It will simplify the process.
“I’m about storytelling, presentation skills, the use of emotion communication,” he shares. “Anytime I see anything on any of those topics, it gets my attention, and I collect data, I collect stories, I collect all this information.”
By having a clear understanding of your own priorities and the themes you want to communicate, you can more easily identify potential stories and examples that support your point.
From data points to narratives
Don’t rely too heavily on data points and corporate histories. These elements can certainly be incorporated into a story. But they alone do not constitute a compelling narrative.
As Rob explains, “In a corporate history, timeline is not a story. It’s just a bunch of data points. It could perhaps potentially be a story if it’s structured in the right way if it has things like an interesting character and a challenge and a resolution. But mostly, it’s just a set of data points.”
To transform data points into engaging stories, we need to focus on the human element. This means identifying the characters involved, the challenges they faced, and the resolution they achieved. By structuring our narratives around these key components, we can create stories that not only convey information but also connect with our audience on an emotional level.
Read next: Why brand identity is important
The role of emotion
While we shouldn’t feel pressured to create overly dramatic stories, emotion does play a crucial role in effective storytelling. As Rob points out, stories have the power to activate people on multiple levels:
- intellectually
- emotionally
- physically
Intellectually, a story allows the audience to see themselves in the narrative and relate to the characters and their challenges. Emotionally, stories can evoke a range of feelings, from pride and confidence to fear and insecurity. Physically, a well-crafted story can elicit responses like goosebumps or a nod of understanding.
By understanding the emotional impact of stories, we can create narratives that resonate with our audience without the need for excessive drama or complexity. As Rob suggests, even modest emotional appeals can be effective in a business context, such as evoking feelings of trust, confidence, or the fear of falling behind.
Embracing authenticity
Ultimately, the key to simplifying storytelling and avoiding overcomplication lies in embracing authenticity. Instead of trying to craft the perfect, emotionally charged tale or relying on stories found through Google searches, we should focus on sharing our own experiences and insights.
As Rob emphasizes, “I really encourage people to mine your own experience for stories, something you went through or something at least that you witnessed. That way, you’re much more likely to connect with your audience because they can see that you’ve lived this thing.”
By sharing authentic stories drawn from our own lives and experiences, we can create narratives that not only simplify the storytelling process but also forge genuine connections with our audience.
Simplifying storytelling
Remember that simplicity is often the key to success.
Resist the urge to overcomplicate and create stories that are both effective and memorable.
As Rob reminds us, “Storytelling is discipline; storytelling is about choices.” By making the choice to simplify our approach the full potential of storytelling in business can come out. And that’s how to stop overcomplicating things.
