In this expert session, Robert Wolfe, a renowned storytelling specialist, shares insights on effective storytelling in professional settings. Robert starts by recounting a personal story from 1982 when he attended a baseball game with his mother. In this narrative, he highlights the power of capturing an audience's attention through engaging stories. He shares how a man making jokes and giving away free ice creams held the crowd spellbound, while another disrupted the atmosphere with racist language. Robert emphasizes the importance of standing up for what one believes in, even in uncomfortable or risky environments.
The discussion then transitions to the significance of storytelling in business contexts. The panel explores various reasons for using stories as a means of communication, such as creating human connections, evoking emotions that aid decision-making, and enhancing memory recall. Robert shares an example of Antonio Deasio, a psychiatrist who discovered the importance of feelings in decision-making through a patient named Elliott. This story illustrates how a lack of emotion made it difficult for Elliott to make decisions. Thus, storytelling emerges as a powerful tool to help influence and guide individuals toward favorable choices.
Robert then delves deeper into storytelling techniques, explaining the impact of narrating a story in present tense versus past tense. He argues that using present tense makes the story more vivid and allows the audience to immerse themselves in the moment. Next, he introduces "vertical takeoff," a technique that involves starting a story with a high-tension moment to grab the audience's attention. This method is useful when following other storytellers or trying to mix things up for variety.
Robert also shares his favorite technique, called "lots of lots," which involves incorporating sensory details into the story to create a more immersive experience for the audience. He invites a volunteer from the session to demonstrate this technique. Lastly, Robert emphasizes the importance of vulnerability in storytelling, which creates an emotional journey and fosters compassion between people. He shares that allowing vulnerability in a story can lead to unexpected emotional changes and stronger connections with the audience.
Throughout the session, Robert encourages participants to recognize techniques in examples that can be applied to their own presentations for maximum impact. The expert continues by discussing the concept of reverse engineering, starting with the end in mind. He argues that the end is a call to action, emphasizing its importance in any speech or presentation. By defining the desired outcome, one can analyze and understand the reasons for affirmative (yes values) and negative (no values) responses from the audience. This process allows the speaker to identify potential objections and find ways to address them, ultimately leading to a more compelling call to action.
Robert's engaging and insightful session emphasizes the power of choosing the right stories and values to connect with audiences and inspire action. He provides various examples throughout the discussion, utilizing interactive tools like the Mentimeter app to encourage audience engagement and participation. The session concludes with Robert inviting attendees to share their thoughts on his questions in the chat and asking if anyone has any final questions for him. He also offers alternative ways for those experiencing issues with the survey link to access it, before thanking everyone for their participation and expressing interest in conducting longer storytelling workshops.
