Tuesday, March 28, 2023

3 Obscure Business Storytelling Books Every Leader Should Read Now

By Esther Choy of Forbes. Excerpts:

"For some time now, storytelling has been understood as a powerful leadership tool. When storytelling is promoted in a business setting, the main benefit ascribed to it is its potential to give an audience information in a quick and memorable way. As neuroscientist Paul Zak’s studies have demonstrated, stories give audiences “better understanding of the key points a speaker wishes to make and enable better recall of these points weeks later.”

However, storytelling has the potential to have an even greater impact. Since COVID, we have seen an increasing appetite for personal narratives and for taking a human-centered approach to organizational structures. As the popularity of Brene Brown’s leadership text Daring Greatly bears witness to: human connection is a vital ingredient for personal and professional thriving. Brown explains, “Connection is why we're here… it's what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.”

It is a culture of storytelling that can drive this kind of connection that focuses on purpose and meaning. The three books on this must-read list below are for leaders who want to understand the full potential of creating a storytelling culture. Though these books are not obviously business storytelling books, if you read them, you will walk away with a firm understanding of why storytelling is a game changer for any organization that wants to empower its people to connect, speak up, and think creatively."

1. Career Counseling: A Narrative Approach by Larry Cochran (SAGE Publishing, 1997)

"This book effectively linked the power of narrative-making to the business world. Understanding how stories help us see and know ourselves will empower you to tell stories that create workplace connection and cohesion.

Cochran’s theory moved the field of career counseling beyond assessments and personality tests, by getting people to dig deeper to understand themselves through storytelling. With narrative-building tools, Cochran argues, people are able to investigate and understand the hidden web of influences that are shaping them into the people they are becoming. Without these narratives, we too often rely on cliches or what we’ve heard others say before to make sense of our own trajectories. Narratives can help us reflect on and understand our own intrapersonal choices. Though writing to an audience of career counselors, the frameworks are applicable to other areas of business leadership and intrapersonal awareness."

"2. Tell Me a Story: Narrative and Intelligence by Roger Schank (Northwestern University Press, 1995)

3. How To Be Interesting: In 10 Simple Steps by Jessica Hagy (Workman Publishing, 2013)"

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