Four words. Four words can open up new worlds, provoke imaginations, create bonds between people, and bring great, overwhelming joy. They are words that most of us have spoken over and over again since we can remember speaking at all. They are four of the most powerful words in any language at any time. What are they? Tell Me A Story! From the Brothers Grimm to Hans Christian Anderson, from Dostoyevsky to Maya Angelou, we love to hear and tell stories, and the “market” for stories, great and small, has never and probably will never wane.
Interesting side note: the Grimms never set out to create fairy tales and certainly not childrens’ stories. They were working on an encyclopedia of German spoken language, and to capture the colloquialisms, dialects, and idiosyncrasies that were prevalent throughout the language, they spent years roaming around Germany collecting stories. Before they finished their project though, they ran out of money. All those years were they wasted? “No” said their publisher. “Hey, Brothers, you’ve got a gold mine here. Just publish these as fireside stories for the family”. And they did. These often-dark tales sold like wiener schnitzel and the Grimm’s went down in history. Later on, Disney got hold of them …but that’s a different story.
Through storytelling, we pass on traditions and skills, deal with fears and anxieties, and find “common ground.” Strangers become friends, friends become family, and it all can start with the words TELL ME A STORY
Today, in 2024, we still love great stories. Stories are so key to who we are as human beings that storytelling is used everywhere to inspire, motivate, and entertain. Exact Communication offers a Story workshop called Let’s Talk: Story. In this workshop, you will understand why and how stories move audiences, learn the elements of good storytelling, and prepare and deliver your own stories with feedback from peers and our coaches. And for October, our Story Workshop is 10% off.