Storytelling and Leadership: How to Make Change Meaningful
Nothing connects people—or commits them to a goal—more powerfully than a good story.
Stories stay in people’s memory, linking emotion and reason to a philosophy and the values that sustain a strategy.
They also shape the culture and identity of a group because they can be repeated and passed on, expanding their reach and opening the door for audiences to identify with the characters and situations involved, which in turn increases engagement with the content.
I remember my years as a reporter, sharing recent events with my colleagues and enjoying the story behind the news even more than the news itself.
“How did you get the governor’s driver to stop the vehicle so you could interview him? I yelled that he was running over my foot… hahaha.”
Or the cameraman who had a girlfriend named Karina. During an exclusive and long-sought interview, they were offered coffee, and the senior official asked him, “Do you want saccharine?” The young man replied, “Of course. Do you know her?”
Stories provide context and purpose to decisions and actions. They help clarify the deeper, more transcendent purpose of projects, removing their merely transactional and operational dimension. They turn a task into a worthy endeavor—one that is itself worth telling.
According to Frances X. Frei and Anne Morriss, authors of Move Fast and Fix Things: The Trusted Leader’s Guide to Solving Hard Problems, when an organization needs transformational change, storytelling can help convince people of the need for change and communicate what the future we seek to build will look like.
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To do so, they suggest four key steps for building a strong story that drives change.
1. Understand deeply, explain simply
The most important thing is to understand in depth what you want to communicate, while being able to explain it in a way that anyone can understand.
If you need to rely on technical jargon and complex concepts, only those with the same level of knowledge will be able to follow you.
The acid test for a good story is telling it to an eight-year-old child, the security guard at the front desk, or an older person outside the industry. If they understand it, you have it.
You should also be able to tell it in less than one page. It is a story, not a novel.
2. Honor the past
Make sure your story includes recognition of the legacy that exists today, acknowledging the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Talking about what was done well, what could have been done better, and even the occasional mistake humanizes organizations and their leaders. It shows humility, a willingness to improve, and an acceptance of their own fragility—all of which generates empathy.
3. Establish the urgency for change
Once the past and the current situation have been acknowledged, it is time to make it clear that things cannot continue as they are—that change is urgent and essential precisely to strengthen what is working and correct what is not, with a sense of purpose and, if necessary, survival.
4. Paint the future and the path to get there
Once the urgency for change has been established, it is important to outline the vision of the future in a vivid and accessible way, using words and concepts that create images and convey feelings to audiences, turning the goal into the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
We must also map out the broad steps needed to achieve it, without hiding the fact that there will be sacrifices, because no change comes without a cost, but always within the context of a shared journey.
The ability to tell stories is one of the qualities that sets great leaders apart, as it allows them to transform information into a unifying narrative.
As communication professionals, we have both the opportunity and the challenge to take the lead in shaping that narrative. Within the tribe, we should be the ones who know all the stories—our own and everyone else’s.
Fidel Salazar
Consulting Director
fsalazar@komunikalatam.com
LinkedIn: Fidel Salazar
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