The Art of Storytelling: How Humans Make Sense of Business
Many years ago, a product line manager had 90 seconds—just 90 seconds—to present a business update to the leadership team. Most people in his situation would default to the usual deck: revenue tables, pipeline slides, a handful of KPIs. But he didn’t. Instead, he told a story.
He described a colleague who woke up late, rushed out the door, and halfway through the commute realized he’d forgotten to brush his teeth. The room went still. Everyone imagined themselves in that embarrassing, all-too-human moment. Then, with perfect timing, the manager pulled a new product from his pocket—one designed precisely for situations like that.
After the story landed, he briefly mentioned the product development milestones and the new partnership that made the launch possible. His presentation was just one of 28 given in under an hour. Take a guess: Which one do you think people remembered? Exactly. Story beats data. Because story reaches the human first. And the human is who makes decisions.
Why Stories Work: The Trojan Horse Effect
Carlson School professor Vlad Griskevicius says stories act like Trojan Horses—we welcome them openly, unaware of the deeper message they’re carrying.
We listen.
We imagine.
We relate.
We lower our guard.
Then, within that open space, the insight sticks.
In business, we often forget this. We drown audiences in numbers and logic, believing that rational arguments are what persuade people. But stories connect first. Data supports second. A healthy balance might be 30% story, 70% facts—but most business presentations flip this ratio and call it “professional.” So why don’t more leaders use stories? Is it a lack of skill? Time? Fear of being too human? Or something bigger?
The Curse of Knowledge: When We Assume Others See What We See
Chip and Dan Heath, authors of Made to Stick, offer a powerful explanation: the Curse of Knowledge. Once we know something deeply—once we see the whole picture—it becomes incredibly hard to imagine what it’s like not to know it. We assume context that others don’t have. We jump ahead. We forget to bridge the gap.
This is beautifully illustrated in a 1990 Stanford experiment by Elizabeth Newton that split participants into “tappers” and “listeners.” Tappers tapped out the rhythm of well-known songs. Listeners tried to guess the song. Tappers predicted listeners would succeed 50% of the time. Reality? Out of 120 songs, listeners guessed 3 correctly. Tappers could hear the full melody in their heads. Listeners heard… tapping.
This is exactly what happens in business: we tap; our audience hears noise. Storytelling gives them the melody.
What Makes Communication Stick?
Sticky ideas aren’t accidental. They follow predictable patterns.
The Heath brothers capture this through the SUCCESs Framework:
Simplicity – Clear, essential, distilled
Unexpectedness – Something that wakes the brain
Concreteness – Tangible, relatable details
Credibility – Believable, grounded information
Emotional Connection – Feeling precedes action
Story – The human wrapper that makes meaning
Storytelling isn’t decoration; it’s delivery. It makes ideas memorable—and memorable ideas drive behavior.
A Few Things I’ve Learned About Storytelling in Business
Here are lessons I’ve gathered over years of coaching and observing leaders:
1. Start with a story, but embed the message inside it.
A story without a message is entertainment.
A message inside a story is transformation.
2. Humor and “relatable moments” vary by culture.
Know the room.
Language, timing, and emotional tone land differently around the world.
3. Consider your audience’s perception of you before you speak.
Storytelling works best when the story aligns with your identity in their minds.
4. Introduce data after the story—not before.
Lead with data, and the audience enters “defense mode.”
Lead with story, and they enter “connection mode.”
Once they connect emotionally, their minds are open to the facts.
Storytelling Is a Leadership Skill—Not a Performance
The art of storytelling isn’t about theatrics. It’s about resonance. It’s about meeting people where they are, lowering their guard, and inviting them into meaning. It is one of the most deeply human tools leaders have—and one of the most underutilized.
So next time you present, ask yourself: Am I tapping out information? Or am I giving people the melody?
