Whoever Tells the Best Story Wins How to Use Your Own Stories to Communicate with Power and Impact
Book Add commentsWhoever Tells the Best Story Wins How to Use Your Own Stories to Communicate with Power and Impact
Most people have been conditioned to believe that business communication must be clear, rational, and objective, with no place for emotion or subjective thinking. Yet the most powerful, persuasive communication has a human element…often delivered simply and personally through the telling of stories.
This book shows readers how to use personal stories to get their ideas across and create meaningful connections between themselves and their audience. Moving beyond the usual speech-openers or ice-breakers, the book gives readers a process for finding, developing, and using their own stories, including how to:
* gain people’s trust * use six different kinds of stories * shift from everyday thinking into story thinking * help shape group decisions and actions.
Filled with enlightening anecdotes, this practical guide gives readers the tools they need to persuade, inspire, and influence others through the power of story.
User Ratings and Reviews
3 Stars Nuts & Bolts of StoryTelling…
We’ve all sat through far too many painful business meetings and presentations with reams of Powerpoint slides exhibiting little emotion, connection and engagement by the presenter and the audience - and we’ve all watched the clock drag along wandering when we can get on with the rest of our lives. Annette Simmons explains why a story wins and captivates all audiences and why it is so remembered (a re-lived experience) when other forms of presentations simply vanish from our consciousness.
This is a good “nuts-and-bolts” how-to book on storytelling. The author uses an informal conversational tone that makes the book very readable. Yet I found the book to be listless - the stories and anecdotes to lack energy and punch - a significant “lead-by-example” opportunity left behind on the table.
1) Story Thinking - What does that even mean?
2) What is Story?
3) Training Your Brain
4) Telling Stories that Win
5) Who-I-am-Stories
6) Why-am-I-Here Stories
7) Teaching Stories
Vision Stories
9) Value-in-Action Stories
10) I-Know-What-You-Are-Thinking Stories
11) Experience is sensory
12) The Gift of Brevity
13) Brand, Organizational & Political Stories
14) Point of View
15) Story Listening
16) Call to Action
4 Stars Good Book
Interesting reading and thought-provoking. It has given me many things to consider that I will incorporate into my presentations.
1 Star empty
This is the worst book I’ve ever bought from amazon. I strongly encourage people to “search inside” before buying. Scan the first or second chapter for anything of value. You won’t find anything. The text (what little there is) focuses entirely on convincing you that you should tell more stories. It does this by making the same few trivial points over and over. Clearly, you don’t need to be convinced of this, since you already purchased the book. With regard to actually learning to tell effective stories (the purported purpose of the book) you will be disappointed.
As a point of further irritation, many of the pages in the book are blank. (supposedly so you can write your own stories inside) Do you really need to spend $14 for a hardcover notebook? (Hint: You don’t.) Furthermore, the last 7 pages of every chapter are exactly the same. (I’m not kidding.)
This book is content-free.
2 Stars Good for beginners
This book is probably most beneficial to leaders who have not typically thought or expressed themselves in “story.” It’s encouraging and offers solid ideas for those just starting to craft their own presentations.
But storytelling right-brainers — who may be attracted by the book’s title — likely will not find this book helpful. This book is very basic.
5 Stars great introduction to the craft of storytelling
I loved the book from the standpoint of helping people find their stories. My profession involves explaining complex technical processes to ordinary people. Learning how to explain takes a lot of practice. This book comes along at a good time. It is a simple but effective tool to help people sort out their own stories and present them in such a way as to be effective in pursuasive speech.
It’s on my must have list.
Jim Hoerricks
Author of Forensic Photoshop - a comprehensive imaging workflow for forensic professionals.
