Verified by 
Key points
- We just do not do storytelling; we are storytellers.
- Great storytellers deploy stories to move from what they know to what they don’t know.
- Structure provides the blueprint for creativity because, without structure, the human mind struggles to derive meaning.
- Stories clarify matters; they change mind; and they inspire change.
Life as we know it is nothing but a story that has been repeated since time memorial. We as human beings make meaning through stories, which we then categorize into different genres. Even so, many of us struggle to captivate attention and imagination through the power of the story—one of the oldest inventions at our disposal.
“Storytelling is not something we do,” wrote Carmine Gallo in The Bezos Blueprint. “Storytellers are who we are.” In the beginning, there was Adam and Eve. That is the perennial genre of religion which has no shortage of stories. In the beginning, we have an atom that evolved through random selection, genetic mutilations, and survival of the fittest. That is the modern genre of science which is rampant with stories.
Arguably the most influential science book of all times, Darwin’s On the Origin of Species contains no quantitative formula whatever because the book is replete with qualitative descriptions and stories. When we read a story, we go from what we know to what we don’t know—from the familiar to the unfamiliar.
According to Yuval Noah Harari, the author of Sapiens, “Telling effective stories is not easy. Yet when it succeeds, it gives Sapiens immense power, because it enables millions of strangers to cooperate and work towards a common goal.” Because storytelling is both an art and a science that few of us master, we erroneously believe that great communicators are born. Nonsense. Great storytellers are made and they sharpen their craft with continuous learning and relentless practice.
Great storytellers deploy the form of the story to gain admission in fierce competitions at Ivy League schools; they use stories to convince busy hiring managers of their merit to perform the job to the highest standards; and they narrate stories that foster both platonic and romantic connections. In other words, great storytellers deploy stories to move from what they know to what they don’t know—from the familiar to unfamiliar.
Since we established that great storytellers are made—not born—then what are the characteristics of a good story? Without getting mired in the technical details, all good stories have one common denominator: They captivate the attention and imagination of the intended audience. Therefore, stories are local, even when they have universal implications. In other words, the more specific the story, the better.
In addition to specificity, good stories have a hidden yet discernable structure—what Aristotle, and other rhetoricians, call the narrative arc. A story has a beginning, where the setting of the story is laid out; it also has a middle, where the progression of events is established; and it has an end, where the story comes to a resolution—a closure.
In the collective mind, some may erroneously believe that structure is antithetical to creativity. Nonsense. Structure provides the blueprint for creativity because, without structure, the human mind struggles to derive meaning. We are hardwired to notice patterns. When we come across an undiscernible pattern, we experience moments of incomprehension, chaos, and misunderstanding.
Following a structure ensures that the story does not drift. Most powerful stories tend to be brief, largely because of the economy of attention. However, these are not hard rules. If the storyteller is able to captivate the human attention and imagination for long, then that is the only measure that matters. Long stories that educate, entertain, and delight are better than mundane, useless, and lame short stories.
Stories clarify matters; they change mind; and they inspire change. One of the oldest inventions of humanity, stories are currently underused. Imagine all the benefits we could gain if we all became adept at telling out stories, if we are able to captivate the attention and imagination of those whom we meet—then the world will become an interesting place to live.
The next time you are trying to communicate, fashion your message in the form of a story. Try it and observe the response of your audience, because they largely determine the value of the stories. Iterate through trial and error until you become the great storyteller you were always meant to be.
