Leaders Letter 174 - Leaders Storytelling Masterclass
Emotion then logic. Warmth then competence. Connection then challenge.
Dear leaders, this week we have a storytelling masterclass.
I invited a friend of leaders letters David to share his storytelling. David and his company help companies ignite the moments that matter.
David (Pullan) runs the story spotters, we have had the privilege of sharing a podcast, discussions on the importance of communication (internal and external), making workshops land and leadership and why many leadership teams just don’t understand effective storytelling
The First Three Strokes
It’s 6 pm on a spring evening in London.
I’m sitting in the bar of a Covent Garden hotel with my partner at The Story Spotters, Sarah Jane McKechnie.
Tourists, businesspeople and a minor celebrity scour drinks lists as they make plans for the night ahead.
But our glasses of Albariño sit untouched as Sarah Winckless, executive coach, and winner of Olympic Bronze in the Double Sculls at Athens 2004, tells us a story that will change the way we think about so many challenges that leaders face.
‘The thing about rowing is that if you only thought about the end, you’d never put your oars in the water. The end is about agony. In just under seven minutes, you know you’ll be blind with pain, hanging over the side of the boat, and probably heaving bile from the pit of your stomach. Agony. If you want to succeed you have to focus on the first three strokes. Power, tempo, rhythm. It’s all about those first three strokes.’
I want to suggest to you that this approach is one that all leaders should adopt as they start their transition into the first one-hundred days of a new role.
And the first three strokes in this case are story-based answers to three questions that every team is asking.
Do I like you?
Do you like me?
Where are you going to take me?
Now I appreciate that question three is the one we really want to answer.
Strategy. Logic. Goals. KPIs.
It’s where time is saved, and money is made.
But as Daniel Kahneman and others have said, you will never speak to the logic of the neo-cortex unless you placate the ‘emotional gatekeepers’ of the limbic system.
Emotion then logic. Warmth then competence. Connection then challenge.
Get this right on day-one and it will create the momentum that will carry you to victory in the following ninety-nine days.
So, let’s look at how to create the story answers to these questions.
Do I Like You?
This is all about letting people know why you’ve been chosen for this role and what it’s going to be like having you at the helm.
And the answer doesn’t lie in a list of your qualifications and career highlights.
The answer lies in your values and the way you go about your leadership.
I recently worked with a wonderful leader who wanted her team to know that she would be their biggest cheer leader and would encourage them to do things they never thought were possible.
The way she did this was by showing a holiday photograph of her four teenagers who were all smiling after finishing a ‘Sound of Music’ bike tour that only hours before had appealed to them as much pushing a pea up Everest with their noses.
Of course, she backed this up with details and facts.
But she won the hearts by using her humour and daring to show her humanity.
Do You Like Me?
A client of mine was at Cambridge at the same time as Chelsea Clinton.
One day the word went out that ‘Bill was in the quad.’
Suddenly the corridors echoed to the sound of books slamming shut and feet racing downstairs to see the ex-President.
The thing my client remembers most is the way that Clinton ‘bragged about you to yourself.’
He had obviously heard small details about the people his daughter spent her days with, he had remembered them, and he wasn’t afraid to voice his admiration
The ability to use genuine appreciation is an instant short cut to the hearts of your team on day one.
But if you want to get good at it you need to start preparing in the weeks leading up to your transition.
Ask HR about where the values are seen in action. Talk to departmental heads about success stories. Walk the floors and notice the things you admire.
Then be like Bill and mention these on day one.
Your team will always thank you if you are specific about the qualities you appreciate, and how they have shaped your desire to be their leader.
Where Are You Going to Take Me?
Congratulations.
You have placated the emotional gatekeepers and are ready to create your vision.
Vision is essentially your view of where your people need to go and how they will get there.
But possibly the most important, and most overlooked, element of storytelling is why they need to get there.
The ‘why’ provides the motivation.
Michael Watkins developed the STARS model to help analyse the type of transition that leaders face.
STARS stands for Start-Up, Turnaround, Accelerated Growth, Realignment and Sustaining Success.
By their very nature, each situation will provide a different motivation.
But emotion alone won’t prove that this is the situation you are facing.
It’s time to get out the data and facts that will speak to the logical neo-cortex.
But never forget that the neo-cortex is already being bombarded with information and will look for any reason to switch off.
Welcome back to our old friend story, the superhighway to head, heart and hands that Shawn Callahan from Anecdote International defines as, ‘facts in context told with feeling.’
Find the facts that prove the need. Describe who will be responsible for what. Identify where the benefit will be seen. And show how it will be measured.
Then say it like you mean it.
All of this will create belief. And belief will create action.
The Next Ninety-Nine Days.
So, you’ve arrived at the end of day one.
You’ve set off with your first three story strokes
People know who you are. They understand that you appreciate who they are. And you’ve motivated them with your vision of success.
Which leaves the next ninety-nine days.
Ninety-nine days of focused action and choosing the behaviours that will trigger what others say about you.
But that’s a whole other story.
Here is David talking about the importance of storytelling on the 10Q podcast ↓
I think you will agree this is a brilliant framing and will help you really understand storytelling and how to connect teams with powerful stories.
Remember to connect with David on LinkedIn (the role of ummm is a great 1-minute video), I know you will also love David’s MO - to help leaders and high-performing teams turn their 'what' into 'WOW!'.
This week’s focus item is to learn from David’s day one idea of storytelling to create momentum (you can start day one this week with a powerful story)
Thanks and have a great week,
Danny Denhard