Caribbean people are great storytellers. We were brought up on the oral traditions of our ancestors, when the right to read and write was forbidden to them. Yes, we are now literate, and enjoy reading, but oh how we love a good storyteller. Stories abound on our verandahs, under trees, on playgrounds, in rum shops and liming spots. Stories are told in our music, dance and poetry. Nowadays, leadership gurus extol the virtues of storytelling as a key leadership skill, and workshops, retreats and coaches on the topic abound. In the Caribbean, it’s in our DNA.
Storytelling reaches into our organisational life. Many years ago when I was managing a food processing company in Jamaica, the highlight of many a day was when our sales reps came in from their sales calls brimming with stories about their forays into groceries, supermarkets, hotels and customers’ offices. Years later, I revelled in the stories about our workshops from our facilitation teams at my firm, Growth Facilitators, in Jamaica. A declaration of: “Hear this now” heralded a grand tapestry of a tale that generated laughter, entertainment, camaraderie and learning.
But there’s a flipside for leaders: an over reliance on the stories, without reference to data, can lead us to make poor decisions. From an anecdote (“I hear that so and so”) to a decision without reference to data is dangerous. Anecdote is important as it stimulates the initial thought, and gives meaning, texture and nuance. But data is important to validate the story and ensure that it is not an isolated anecdote. Going beyond the story to the data can help us figure out if there’s a new trend that might present opportunities, or threats for us.
Data itself tells a story. I often tell my own story of my relationship with Mathematics in school. I hated it. I was terrible at it, and struggled incessantly through high school and university, where I almost didn’t graduate! I failed Maths and Stats (a required course in 1st year) 3 times, finally barely passing in my final year. Much later in life, I figured out my problem: I thought Math was about numbers – no-one taught me that those numbers tell a story. Now I have a much more comfortable relationship with Math and even though I still struggle with simultaneous equations, I can see the logic behind them. But I digress …
One of the things I love about the Balanced Scorecard is how beautifully it tells the story of cause and effect relationships in an organisation’s strategy. Looking at the metrics in each perspective (Financial, Customer, Internal Process and Learning and Growth), one can see how they are interrelated and drive each other. One can read the report and verbalise the numbers, thus making the numbers become a story in and of themselves, embroidered with the anecdotes from the field that allow us to have a fuller picture of what’s happening.
A fundamental job of leaders is to make tough decisions. It’s difficult to know when we have the right information, but this is made much clearer when we have the data AND the anecdotes. Being able to interpret the data as story gives us the ability to communicate with and engage our teams in very powerful ways.
Another way of describing this is the importance of both qualitative and quantitative data. Researchers tend to champion one or the other (usually the one they are most familiar with!) often without recognizing that there is value in both! Analysis of the strong quantitative data can only be enhanced by the qualitative, the stories.
Another thought: brilliant storytellers can lead a company or institution astray, like the Pied Piper, by only relaying the anecdotal, and distorting or portraying only one side of the reality. The data to support the stories must be demanded.
Thanks as always, Marguerite.
Thank you Julie. Your 2nd comment is right on point! And that is why we need to have both, so that when the Pied Piper is whistling his tune, we can say “but wait …. here are the facts” and hopefully stop the parade to destruction.
Gratefully and joyfully
Marguerite
Beautiful and poignant Marguerite.
I love this:
#HearThisNow – a clarion call which can evoke different reactions depending on the speaker, tone or intent. That in your experience, it preceded ” a grand tapestry of a tale that generated laughter, entertainment, camaraderie and learning” reflects the best of office life.
With one of my teams, our weekly meetings always had a storytelling component, in that each person was able to share something they were proud of or thankful for or had learnt. One team member who hated meetings and showed resistance when I had just started with that organisation, shifted her perspective over time as she realised that my meetings were not a forum for shaming but for bonding and building our capacity to support each other as a team.
Julie , this is a powerful caveat: “brilliant storytellers can lead a company or institution astray.” I have seen that too.
Thank you Klao. It just occurred to me that when we express gratitude, we are in effect telling small stories. I have a client who does this at the start of each meeting. That team is crocheting a narrative, one stitch at a time, that over time will emerge as something really powerful and positive. Quite an antidote to the storytellering that leads people astray.
I really do love how much small things matter, as you demonstrate with your team member who was able to shift her perspective over time, by the simple, small act of expressing gratitude consistently.
Gratefully and joyfully
Marguerite