Wake Me Up When the Data is Over . . .

. . . is the name of a brand new Amazon bestselling book by Lori Silverman, management consultant, speaker, and author. Today I will post the first part of my interview with Lori, but before I get to that, I want you to know that now is the time to order you copy of this book. Why? Because if you order between now and Thursday, October 19th, you'll receive over $500 in valuable gifts on top of this great book!

To learn more about and order the book, go here.

Then go here to claim your bonus gifts!

On with the first part of our interview. . .

Kevin: How did Wake Me Up When the Data is Over: How Organizations Use Stories to Drive Results come to be?

Lori: In radio and TV interviews to promote Stories Trainer Tell: 55 Ready-to-Use Stories to Make Training Stick in 2003, I was asked to discuss the advantages and pitfalls and effective use of stories in training. In return, on-air personalities shared instances where stories made a difference in their lives. Then they'd ask: Can stories be used in sales? Are they effective on a shop floor? Do they have a role in customer service? Since there wasn't anything written at the time on these topics, I'd provide examples from my consulting work. But I hungered to learn more.

So I revisited books on storytelling in organizations and browsed numerous articles. I got a few more examples, but not many. Then I joined the National Storytelling Network and its Storytelling in Organizations special interest group. Whenever I heard names of people working in the field, I'd contact them to learn more about their efforts. Their insights led me to events at the Smithsonian Institution and through Golden Fleece. Yet, I still wasn't satisfied. Something was missing.

Not one to wait for examples to materialize, I decided to scour the planet for story applications in various business disciplines such as branding, marketing, financial management, project management, strategy and the like. Knowing I couldn't accomplish this work alone, I queried Karen Dietz, executive director, in January 2004 about partnering with the National Storytelling Network. Together we approached Jossey-Bass. After writing ten proposal drafts, I landed a book contract and the National Storytelling Network became the formal sponsor of Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over: How Organizations Use Stories to Drive Results.

Fourteen months later, 14 contributors and I had interviewed 171 people representing 81 organizations around the world to obtain examples of story use not previously published or brought to the forefront of the industry. Two additional contributors fashioned the book's introduction and a comprehensive list of resources in the field. The field of story work now has an amazing array of examples, the results of which are truly astounding.

Kevin: What types of results did you uncover?

Lori: My book is the first time specific results of story use (not storytelling!) have been captured. Here's what I've recently learned by aggregating this information across the 72 examples in the book. Keep in mind that some examples impacted more than one outcome.

* 36 percent demonstrated improved financial performance through increased growth, profitability, and/or increased funding.
* 18 percent show a link between story and furthering specific organizational goals.
* 17 percent reported increased levels of engagement between people and the organization and/or higher levels of teamwork.
* 17 percent showed a positive impact on the amount and type of customer feedback, improved customer satisfaction and/or improved customer perceptions of the brand.
* 11 percent demonstrated decreased workflow cycle time, improved speed of message delivery or time to market, and increased efficiencies.
* 10 percent reported an impact on training feedback and effectiveness, including transfer of skills and knowledge to the workplace.
* 8 percent noted positive cultural changes.

Other results from story use included increased visibility through media or industry awards and rankings, closing more deals with clients, improved staff retention, practical problem solving, bringing core values to life, overcoming issues, improved employee satisfaction, and decreased employee absenteeism.

If you're a leader, how can you argue with these outcomes?

Kevin: Why are stories so powerful in organizations?

Lori: Let's first talk about how they impact people on an individual level. Our brains are wired for stories. They create visual images that the brain comprehends, remembers, and recalls with high degrees of accuracy. They also connect left brain and right brain thinking together into whole-brain thinking. Consequently, stories have the ability to:

a) touch people's physical being (for example, they may laugh or their bodies may have a visceral reaction to what they see hear, or experience),
b) cause them to think about and reflect on what they've heard,
c) impact their emotions, and
d) speak to the human spirit.

When we affect people in this manner, changing or shifting behaviors and attitudes is now possible.

So when you bring people together to share their personal stories (for example, why they chose a common career such as nursing), to co-create the story of their future as a part of strategic planning, or to combine stories about what they've learned as being members of a project team, they have the opportunity to connect and find common ground with each other on these four levels. People start to function as a collective whole rather than as individuals and together can move in a particular direction. And, they do so more quickly.

On a one-on-one basis, when you take the time to truly listen to someone's story and to acknowledge its significance, you establish rapport and build trust. Now attach this to the results housed in Tom Rath's new book, Vital Friends: People who have a best friend at work are seven times as likely to be engaged in their job. Given that the Gallop Organization has shown that 71 percent of employees are disengaged, this is very significant.

I'll have more of my interview with Lori tomorrow . . . in the mean time, order your copy and get all of the amazing bonuses!

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