Whether or not we are aware of it, we live our lives through stories. If it’s not the stories that others tell us, the ones we read, or the ones we watch on TV and the movies, then it’s the ones we tell ourselves. Given that stories are such an important part of how we view the world, the ability to tell compelling stories is important. It’s especially important when you are building a business and trying to market your product and services. I know because I’ve been there and am living it now.

I hadn’t given much thought to studying how to tell a story until I read this article on Matt Blumberg’s blog. It was this excerpt from the article that inspired me to learn more about the art of storytelling:

“In business, the best story wins.” That’s another quote from a former manager of mine that I have found to be universally true. People in business respond to many things: numbers, bullet points, graphs and visualizations. But they respond to all of those things better when they are wrapped in stories…. When you can present your hypotheses in the context of a story, about your business, your customers, what you want to achieve, how you will do it, and why it matters, you will build consensus and show leadership.

In his post, Blumberg recommended reading Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee as a way to learn about and improve your storytelling. While the book is primarily targeted at screenwriters, Blumberg asserted that it would help you think about “all the elements that go into a good story”. I figured it was worth taking a flyer to see if I could improve the way I present things to people, in particular my business, and the products and services I offer.