Insight article
Moving people to do great things: behind The Storytellers’ purpose
At The Storytellers, we know that meaningful change is built on emotional connection. That’s why we talk about moving people to do great things through storytelling. In this post, we want to unpack what that means.
Our purpose in practice
Let’s take Trolley Tom. An ordinary guy working for one of our clients, a major supermarket retailer (you’ve heard of them). While collecting trolleys, Tom notices people struggling with the sloping car park. One meeting, he raises his hand to offer a simple but effective solution. Within days, he’s crafted small cardboard wedges that fit into trolley wheels, enabling customers to manage the slope.
And there it was, in a nutshell, the perfect example of how this supermarket goes above and beyond to preserve its trusted reputation through customer service. When this client approached us, they were facing a dip in morale and an unhealthy shift in culture. Trolley Tom’s was just one story of inspiring behaviour following our tailored programme, engaging individuals with the company’s wider ambition.
A unique approach
We work with a company to co-create its overarching narrative and devise an integrated programme that connects people to the bigger picture through their individual stories: the initiatives, the inventions, the acts of kindness and courage.
These human, relatable stories show people the role they can play within an organisation, engaging everyone from shop floor to C-suite so that they feel invested in the company’s overall goal. This emotional hook is critical for people to embrace change, whatever the business’s ambition: to deliver big shifts in customer satisfaction, increase share price value or slash operating costs.
Of course, every client we speak to is different. Industries vary, sizes differ, pain points range from skills gaps and organisational politics to entrenched behaviours and fear of change. We’ll always design the most effective programme, finding the stories that link back to the core narrative and champion the behaviours you want to see.
Storytelling as opportunity
Today, many leaders question whether their stories are compelling enough to bring people with them on their journeys and to realise their goals. Through storytelling, we offer an opportunity like no other: the chance for a business to shape its narrative and to talk to its people in an authentic, human way, allowing each person to understand his or her part in the overall journey. That’s how you move people to do great things, and accelerate change.
To discover how storytelling can transform your business, download our e-book, Storytelling: how to reset an organisation’s narrative to inspire change
