There’s a lot of talk about the use of storytelling in business leadership right now. According to a study published in a 2018 edition of the Journal of Leadership Education, the role of storytelling is directly linked to leadership effectiveness. Stories can be connected to a leadership purpose: to motivate others, build trust, build your brand, transmit values, get others to work together, share knowledge, tame the grapevine and lead people into the future.
Since that research was published, storytelling in management is undeniably gaining traction. The University of Iowa’s Tippie School of business has launched a new programme – Story Lab – to teach students the art of storytelling and personal experiences. You can even study ‘Storytelling for Business’ at Cambridge University. So why is becoming so popular?
The benefits of storytelling
Accomplished leaders use storytelling to improve interpersonal relationships, communicate strategy and build culture. It can create common ground among teams and unleash the drive towards creating a shared vision of the future. Storytelling gives a sense of shared learning and should lead to the development of mutual understanding. It can be used to model excellence, develop organisational culture, support strategic management and strengthen employee loyalty.