How (not) to spin a good yarn

Many of us were first introduced to business storytelling as one technique in the knowledge management 'toolkit'.  KM guru David Gurteen calls it a 'key ingredient' for a range of organisational activities, from training to innovation.  Stories enable us to unite ideas with emotional engagement, but in order for them to be really effective the story must have a clear meaning - and be relevant to your audience.In an article on Openforum.com, Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith write about the ‘7 deadly sins of business storytelling'.    They are the authors of a book about using social media to drive social change.   The article actually focuses more on the do's than the don'ts.  The key elements of effective business storytelling are:

• Show don't tell
• A story arc is better than strict chronological order
• No jargon! 
• Focus on people, not things
• A real story - no invention!
• Include the problems - and the failures - in the story to increase engagement
• Encourage storytelling by all - employees, customers etc