Tuesday, 26 August 2025

๐ŸŽ™️ Storytelling Tips for Leaders to Inspire People

1️⃣ Start with the Why

  • Before you tell the story, be clear on why you’re telling it.
  • Are you trying to inspire courage, explain a value, or reinforce safety?
  • A story without purpose is just entertainment — a story with purpose is leadership.
    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: Use Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle → make sure the why is clear at the end.

2️⃣ Make it Personal and Human

  • Share stories from your own journey, failures, or lessons learned.
  • Vulnerability builds trust — people follow leaders who are real, not perfect.
    ๐Ÿ’ก Example: Hana shares how she once failed an audit but turned it into a lesson on discipline.

3️⃣ Keep it Simple, But Vivid

  • Avoid jargon or corporate buzzwords.
  • Use sensory detail — let people see the problem, hear the struggle, feel the success.
    ๐Ÿ’ก Instead of saying: “We improved yield.”
    ๐Ÿ’ก Say: “Every extra ton of FFB we saved meant another scholarship for workers’ children.”

4️⃣ Use the 6 Leadership Story Types (Simmons)

Annette Simmons (The Story Factor) suggests leaders should master:

  • Who I Am → build credibility with your background.
  • Why I Am Here → show motives, not hidden agendas.
  • The Vision → paint the future in a way people can imagine.
  • Teaching → turn mistakes into lessons.
  • Values-in-Action → real examples of company values lived out.
  • I Know What You’re Thinking → disarm doubts with empathy.

5️⃣ Balance Struggle and Hope

  • A good story shows challenge (conflict) and resolution (hope).
  • People connect when they see struggle, but they’re inspired when they see a way forward.
    ๐Ÿ’ก Example: Hana tells workers about a dangerous near-miss that could have ended badly — and how vigilance prevented disaster.

6️⃣ Invite Them into the Story

  • Make listeners feel like they are part of the narrative.
  • Use phrases like: “Each of you has the power…”, “This is our shared story.”
  • When people see themselves in the story, they act.

7️⃣ Repeat and Cascade

  • A great story isn’t told once. It’s retold until it becomes part of company culture.
  • Encourage managers and supervisors to re-share stories in their own voice.

8️⃣ End with a Call to Action

  • Don’t leave the story hanging.
  • End with a clear moral or action you want them to take.
    ๐Ÿ’ก “Machines run on oil, but this mill runs on your courage. Speak up, and you save lives.”

๐ŸŒŸ Leadership Takeaway

๐Ÿ‘‰ Facts instruct.
๐Ÿ‘‰ Rules enforce.
๐Ÿ‘‰ But stories inspire — they light the fire inside people to act with conviction, not just compliance.

#blog #blogger #kembarainsan #story

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