Combine Information With Inspiration
If I could list every presentation, speech, lecture, or meeting you've ever attended – and quickly forgotten – they'd all have one thing in common…
100% information/0% inspiration.
Even if we're generous and measure the average balances of those talks at 90% information/10% inspiration, you still forgot them almost immediately. You can't recall their themes, purposes, content, even where you were when you heard them. I wasn't there to struggle through those interminable presentations with you, but I know exactly why they failed.
Aim for 50/50
Information alone is dull and pedantic. Remember that History 201 professor from college? Of course you don't. Too much blah blah blah, not enough rah rah rah. At the same time, 100% inspiration/0% information, while rare, is equally forgettable. Endless hype or forced sunshine without any substance to make the story worthwhile delivers no value, vanishing from your mind just as quickly. An audience wants to be pumped up, but once they realize there's no content to apply their excitement to, they tune out.
Now think back over the presentations and engagements you saw years or even decades ago but still recall to this day. Again, I wasn't there, but again, I know exactly why you've never forgotten those sessions. It's because they delivered a balanced and rewarding blend of 50% information/50% inspiration or close to it. That proven fundamental of great #CorporateStorytelling hit its target and left a mark that's lasted over time.
Numbers Need Stories… and Vice Versa
Sadly, most talks never come close to this ideal balance. They open with information, close with information, and spew nothing but information every moment in between. Maybe you've given these types of presentations yourself? That stops now.
As I always say, a number without a compelling story to give that number meaning and make it personal is instantly ignored or forgotten. The number fades—the story lasts. Together, they create the value and motivation your audience wants to hear, that you hope to deliver, and that makes you and your content memorable.
In 1972, Fergus Craik & Robert Lockhart published Levels of Processing: A Framework for Memory Research showing that deeply processed memories are more durable while superficially processed memories are easily erased. Craik & Lockhart found that we internalize and retain information only when it is directly powered by a recognizable, accessible relation to that data or concept. If we see ourselves in the metrics, those metrics penetrate and lodge; if our relation to those metrics isn't clear, those metrics go in one ear and out the other. Simply put, reliable memorization requires deep connection of information to inspiration.
Deliver a Balanced Story
Say I want to deliver a presentation on last quarter’s growth numbers at a user group conference. Not exactly the world's sexiest topic, but I need you retain the data I have to share. If I simply bombard you with information, number after number, chart after graphic, it's a sure bet I'll lose you in minutes, and my talk will lead to nothing for either of us.
But if I add #CorporateStorytelling to balance that information with the inspiration of my personal passion around why that data matters –where each number creates value for you, how I can empower you to leverage my statistics for your benefit – you'll win, and so will I. You may not recall every detail I share, but you'll connect to all the ways my data affects your reality. Most important, you'll remember my story.
So how do I craft that balance? As I give you the statistical reports, I also help you see yourself and your role in those reports. I know that each measurement, good or bad, directly affects your job, your team, your life.
If last quarter's growth was disappointing, I pinpoint the valuable lessons we've learned together and how we can partner on new opportunities for future success. If growth exceeded expectation, I reveal which attributes led to that payoff, and the ways we can we apply our skills to build on that performance. Every number includes a story on why you should care.
Bottom Line
Information speaks to the head, inspiration speaks to the heart. When a #CorporateStory deftly combines the two, the results are unavoidable, impactful, and lasting. If you want to dig deeper on this concept, check out Chapter 10: Adding the Passion in my book, Nothing Gets Sold Until the StoryGets Told.
Take note of when your conversations become overloaded with information, then make a conscious effort to add some inspirational storytelling for balance. That balance will turn your lecture into a conversation, and your statistic into memorable value.
