German novelist and playwright Gustav Freytag wanted to understand how storytelling impacted the human psyche. He wondered, “What makes a story so engaging that it changes a person’s behavior?” After studying William Shakespeare’s work, Freytag designed a map of storytelling—a key that explained why the man considered ‘the greatest writer in the English language,’ had achieved so much success. Today, Freytag’s graphic interpretation explains the structure of many of the most repeated stories—those told in today’s Hollywood blockbuster films, and those that may have first been told on cave walls.
We were curious, could this simple key to great storytelling have an even greater impact?
According to Freytag, good storytelling, in graphic form, looks like a pyramid. A good story begins with a situation. Action rises throughout the story to reach a climax. And finally, resolution is found—results are achieved. We saw this simple graphic and thought it resembled something near and dear to our hearts—the format of showing appreciation.
The word ‘storytelling’ might sound like a fuzzy science, but then we considered the amount of research marketing agencies analyze when clients invest millions in ad campaigns. For example, researchers at John Hopkins actually studied 108 Super Bowl commercials over a two-year period. They studied the typical triggers of great commercials—cute animals and sex appeal—expected points of study. However, the team at John Hopkins also analyzed plot based on traditional storytelling methodology. And that’s what really grabbed our interest. “People are attracted to stories,” said Keith Quesenberry in a Harvard Business Review article, “because we’re social creatures and we relate to other people.”
Whether you’re looking for ‘buy-in’ from customers to drink your beer, buy your domain names, or eat your snack foods, the way a company tells its story to customers is critical. So why wouldn't it be critical in the world of leading others to a desired outcome, inspiring others to perform better, or getting others to follow your lead to great results?
Proper storytelling just might be the most impactful leadership method yet.
A study by Uri Hasses of Princeton revealed surprising brain activity in audiences as they listened to a speaker tell a story. “The results showed that not only did all of the listeners show similar brain activity during the story, the speaker and the listeners had very similar brain activity despite the fact that one person was producing language and the others were comprehending it,” said Hasses.
With this insight, research suggests that proper storytelling can be a driver of employee performance—allowing audience members to think, feel, and respond the same way as a character in the story. Consider the impact a true story could make on an employee when they hear the company’s Founding Story, Pivotal Story, Teamwork Story, or Great Work Story, told in Freytag’s format—situation, climax, and resolve.
The Organization’s Founding Story: A company’s founding story can fill an employees heart with motivation and inspire a deeper connection to the purpose and brand. Research by HealthStream, Towers Watson, and the O.C. Tanner Institute reveals that, “Pride in the Corporate Symbol, is one of the three components of driving employee engagement.” Basically, that means employees feel a connection to what the company stands for—which is often communicated in the founding story.
Pivotal Stories: In 1859 a train crashed near Johnson Creek, Wisconsin. Fourteen people were killed that day. Two of the victims had recently become policyholders of a new insurance company named Northwestern Mutual. Claims for the accident totaled $3,500. Sadly, the company only had $2,000. Company leaders quickly took a loan to pay the claims—and do right by their policyholders. This story has been repeated to both employees and customers ever since.
Pivotal stories expose the thinking that overcame the situation. They focus on the first big win, or the first big challenge, that was overcome. Pivotal stories share the history and the mindset of how an organization deals with change.
Teamwork Stories: In 1980, Herb Brooks organized a group of young men to form what is arguably the most impressive teamwork story in history. Known today as the Miracle on Ice, the 1980 U.S. Hockey Team skated away from those Olympic Games with the gold medal. Sure, any gold medal winning team is impressive. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, the big reveal is that the U.S. Team was comprised only of college and amateur hockey players—who were competing against professional teams.
Teamwork stories detail the late nights, the contrasting talents, and the breakthrough moments when a group of people challenged a status quo, realized the missing piece of the puzzle, and changed one small aspect that changed everything.
Great Work Stories: Storytelling about individual achievements should happen everyday in the workplace. They not only have the power (given in the form of recognition) to elevate an individual’s performance, but they also elevate the performance of everyone who hears the story being told.
Consider the impact the following story could have on team members. “Heather, we had only a couple of days to submit our project, and you still pushed us to explore something new—to be more creative and innovative in our approach. Thank you. Because you insisted that we try one more time, we generated some great new ideas.”
The Impact of a Story: A 10-year, 100,000-person study conducted throughout the U.S. and Canada by the O.C. Tanner Institute and HealthStream confirms that recognition and appreciation tops the list of things employees say they want most from their employers. According to the study, 79% of employees who quit their jobs cite a lack of appreciation as a key reason for leaving. And of the people who report the highest morale at work, 94.4% agree their managers are effective at recognizing them—telling a story about the great work they've done.
Storytelling, with a purpose, is key to being a good leader. And, in fact, it is a foundational aspect of progress—when we hear how others overcame problems or situations, ideas begin to fill our heads, inspiration fills our hearts, and actions begin to create the stories that will be shared tomorrow.
Do you have a great story about the power of appreciation? Share it with us and your story could be told in our next book!
