Story-listening

originally published on medium

Any consultant, strategist, or person with a MBA will tell you how essential listening is. This isn’t rocket science. We’ve been taught the value of listening since kindergarten. But after spending 7 years crafting stories and strategies that lead to growth and innovation, I’ve found that “story-listening” is what delivers value. Story-listening is when you listen for the story that individual is in, which may include a retelling of past events, but often describes their current context and where they are heading. It doesn’t mean that everyone is sharing with you a compelling story. But everyone is experiencing a story, whether they’re aware of it or not.

Here’s how I use story-listening in my work as a narrative strategist.

Step 1: identify the characters

In business, identifying who’s story it is can be a full time job. Is it the customer? The service provider? The employees? The industry? If you’re in a regulated or complex environment, you’re going to have a whole host of characters. The truth is, everybody has a story and everyone is a main character. Business is comprised of stakeholders, all seeking to achieve their aims. Success starts when we can identify who’s in this story and the roles they play. When I practice story-listening, I’m identifying who the characters are and placing them in relation to one another. For instance, when working with healthcare clients, there’s not just one character. Yes, healthcare is all about patients. But we have also providers, payers, policymakers and much more depending on the story.

Step 2: identify their desire(s)

What do the characters want? Is it a faster service? A more enjoyable experience? To not dread Mondays? Believe it or not, this can be one of the hardest parts of story-listening, because most of us have a hard time fully articulating what we want. Sometimes it’s very straightforward though, like when a patient wants to know how much a doctor’s appointment will cost. But often, the character’s desires are hidden under layers of conflicting feelings, urgent demands and lack of inquiry. Identifying what a character wants requires tact, curiosity and letting go of any preconceived notions. Do patients really want to know how much a doctor’s appointment will cost or do they want to know if it’s covered by their insurance? When story-listening, I always have more questions than answers. I follow those questions to see if I can get more clarity around what the characters really desire.

Step 3: Identify obstacles to getting those desires

Obstacles to getting what a character desires can either be known or unknown. With good research and observation, most people can identify obstacles to getting what they want. But sometimes, challenges come straight out of left field. Just like the most memorable stories have twists that no one expected (Darth Vader is Luke’s father?!), the nature of getting what you want means there’s always room for the unexpected. Story-listening requires an openness to the reality that we can’t predict the future. Things happen, obstacles emerge and we need to figure it out to get what we want.

Truth is, we’re all in the midst of a story. Learning how to listen and identify the core elements of that story can help craft a new, better story that everyone is a part of. With multiple stakeholders and their plethora of desires, business is a dynamic tale of desire and obstacles, ultimately leading to success when all the stakeholders get what they want.

Ari Mostov uses storytelling for outcomes. Learn more at www.wellplay.world