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CORPORATE STORYTELLING

STORYCOM

KEN FARMER

ACTOR, COMMUNICATION CONSULTANT, AUTHOR

"It is just as hard to create a toilet seat as a castle window... but the view is different" -Ben Hecht-

Today's business world is glutted with information, there are facts and figures inundating us from every angle, it's sometimes like being in a bee swarm,...
too many bees to swat.

If we are going to get our ideas, products, concepts or services across to our audience, (oops, the actor in me) our customers and potential customers; we first have to get their attention... and keep it.

When I was 9 I spent the summer at my Grandparents farm in Arkansas and one morning I was tagging around after my Grandfather (as usual). He goes out to barn to get Ted, his big black-nosed mule to hook him up for the day's plowing; as soon as he was hooked up, Grampa picked up a 2x4 and swatted him right between the eyes. I was shocked and asked;

"Why'd you do that for, Grampa?"... " I Had to get his attention; and now he'll wonder all day if I'm gonna do it again."

We have to get attention with words. Even more direct, with STORIES.

Because of the aforementioned glut of information, people's attention span is shorter and much thicker skinned today and Storytelling is a way through that skin.

The one thing an actor fears most is "Audience Apathy"; if his audience doesn't care about his character, one way or another, then he has failed. It is the same in business; both are selling a product, a situation or an image.

Personal Storytelling, using power visualization and imagery
is the best way to increase interest in sales pitches, presentations, speeches, training sessions or even board meetings.

Alan Kay, (vice president at Walt Disney Co) said:

"Why was Solomon recognized as the wisest man in the world? Because he knew more stories (proverbs) than anyone else. Scratch the surface in a typical boardroom and we're all just cavemen with briefcases, hungry for a wise person to tell us stories."

Storytelling is a way to make people more comfortable, and the more comfortable they are with the presentation, the more attention they pay to it.

The Storyteller who has skills in creating and developing highly visual imagery and colors his stories with emotions, lives longest in the memories of the audience.

Presentations interwoven with relevant Stories tend to trigger
emotional responses and create links with an audience's memory. We all tend to rapidly forget the average or commonplace when it is in competition with unique and sensational circumstances.

Emotions are the primary tool of the Storyteller;

"WORDS ARE LIKE A CLAY POT; IT'S WHAT'S INSIDE
THAT'S IMPORTANT." - KF -

STORYTELLING WITHOUT EMOTIONS IS LIKE
AN EAGLE WITHOUT WINGS. - KF -

SHAKE A STORY UNTIL ALL THE WORDS
FALL AWAY; WHAT IS LEFT IS STORYTELLING.
-KF-

WORDS ARE THE LEAST RELIABLE PURVEYOR
OF THE TRUTH -Walsch-

Stories colored with emotions create a context that puts the audience in a position to understand why a point matters.

Stories are a place to hang knowledge on; "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." -William Butler Yeats
Stories disseminate knowledge through the use of visual imagery.
Stories are a form of Corporate knowledge management.
Stories make facts come to life.
Stories are told from the heart, not the head.
Storytelling, like all arts, is more feeling and instinct than

rules.

Storytelling is the Most Common thing in the World; it is also one of the Hardest to do Well.

SKILLS:
Storytellers who learn some basic acting skills can enhance
their stories with the development of Characters to heighten
and reinforce "emotional brand-building".

The use of Characters (voice changes, posture, facial expressions) in a story dramatically improves the visual imagery (Power Visualization) for the audience.

The Storyteller must see what he says and he must see the Character before he can be the Character.

If the Storyteller doesn't see what he is saying... neither
will his audience.

CLICK HERE FOR A STORY: "DECISIONS"

"Storytelling isn't just for kids anymore... it's for CEO's too."

SALON MAGAZINE

- LOGIC OPENS THE MIND, BUT
EMOTION OPENS THE HEART -
KF

STORYCOM
CORPORATE STORYTELLING
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KEN FARMER

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*** CORPORATE STORYTELLING LINKS ***

Presentations Magazine: "TELLING STORIES" by Rebecca Ganzel

Fast Company Magazine: "WHAT'S YOUR STORY" by Dan Pink