Storytelling and Work

Several years ago Meridian Group worked with a company in Hawaii. Many employees were native Hawaiians, descendents of a Polynesian culture that had no written language. Like other oral cultures, native Hawaiian's passed their traditions and culture across the generations through storytelling. The "Tell Story" tradition is still alive and well with today's Hawaiians.

In this company many of the employees would gather at the end of the workday and "Tell Story". The stories were sometimes about the workplace—but often not. They were stories of people, of family, of events-sad, funny, everyday, human. The story flowed around the group, each person picking up the thread. This "Tell Story" connected people. It told about and made the work culture.

Stories Redesign a Control Room
Part of Meridian Group's work was getting employees involved in the design of a new central control room (actually a complex of rooms) for the sprawling plant. In the evenings, the engineers and employees who would occupy the new control room would sometimes "Tell Story" about how they would like to work together in their new facility. It gradually became clear that the initial control room design should be modified. They suggested many changes, such as more meeting rooms, a wide central corridor that could function as an informal discussion area, and a window overlooking the magnificent coastline.

Several months of storytelling shaped the building and readied its occupants. When the control room opened, people knew just what to do—how they would be in it, and how they would work together. The building drew together functions that had been spread throughout the plant—functions that had previously not communicated or cooperated well. The new control room was an immediate success. Within several months overall productivity of the plant rose more than 10 percent and continued upward.

Storytelling is Part of Being Human
Storytelling, like language, music, and spirituality, is entwined with the evolution of the human brain. These and other functions helped shape the brain's development. They are hardwired into us. Everyone loves a good story.

When I give talks I often tell stories of my experiences with clients. People usually ask for more. Business books that tell stories or use parables are often big sellers. Even a simple storybook like Who Moved My Cheese, (which has so little content that Publishers Weekly, the book trades' review magazine, refused to review it because "It would take longer to read the review than to read the substance of the book.") can sell millions of copies.

When you listen to people's stories you get to know them—you feel closer and more trusting. Sadly many people feel isolated at work. Sharing stories can help dissolve isolation and build a supportive community. Stories can reveal that each of us is a hero capable of extraordinary things.

Few stories are true in the sense of being an exact description of the event. Stories reveal what is remembered—the recalled experience. Anyone who has interviewed people about an accident knows that people can experience the same event very differently. Stories mix facts with meaning. Stories are part of what makes us who we are, how we see ourselves and what we choose to select from our past to create our future.

Everyone is a Hero
Everyone has a story. Everybody is a story. Everyone's story matters. Like life, our stories have no beginning and no end. The wisdom in the story of the highest manager is often no greater than the wisdom of the lowest. When I was an operations manager I would sometimes stay in the evenings and talk with the janitor. His wisdom about the company, its history and current issues always helped me see my own work problems in new and valuable ways.

I have known many managers who have forgotten to fully experience their own life. They have lost their way as people and become a "Manager" who thinks stories have to be about successes, accomplishments, "results". These people, sadly unaware of themselves and how they are heard by others, often create an undernourished workplace where people cannot bring all of who they are, and therefore cannot contribute their full potential to the enterprise's success. Without real stories of their own, how can these managers lead?

As business managers we live mostly in a world of numbers—of production, sales, and profits. However "Not everything that counts can be counted." There are no meanings in facts, unless we choose to give them meaning. Meaning comes from human experience. It does not exist outside of people. Stories, like pictures, tell more than numbers will ever reveal.

Cultural Interviews Include Story Telling
In my work for more than 20 years I have always urged managers to take time to quietly, privately, and confidentially meet with each employee, and listen to his or her story (see http://www.companyculture.com/change/interview.htm ). If you create a comfortable setting and engage the other person in a real dialogue, you get to know them better, what is important in their life, how they experience work. Listening to people's stories and sharing yours builds relationships and trust, and helps you understand what you must do to better lead the work culture. This is important work, and it's fun.

Note: Parts of this newsletter were adopted from a wonderful book, Kitchen Table Wisdom by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., Riverhead Books, N.Y. 1996.

STATISTICS
This month's statistics are from The Gallup Organization Management Journal, September 11, 2003, Engagement Drives Results at New Century, by Teresa Tritch,

• In New Century Financial Corporation, engaged workers produce 25% more revenue than those who are not engaged. Engaged employees were also superior performers in other areas.
• At New Century retail branches that had significantly improved employee engagement two years in a row had a growth rate in per-person revenue six times faster than at other branches-regardless of how engaged or disengaged the workers had been at the outset.

Barry Phegan
I hope you find the newsletters interesting and useful. If you have comments or suggestions, please email me barry@meridiangrp.net

If you want new tools to improve your workplace, you will find them in this book. A 187 page toolkit of practical information and examples. For more information on the book, click on the Amazon logo.