We have been telling stories for a very long time. For humans, stories are a fundamental way of communicating. They weave their magic through every known culture, likely because of the way they help us to make sense of the world around us. Our brains are programmed to look for recognisable patterns of information and to assign these patterns meaning. Indeed, in stories we ‘see’ ourselves - we relate aspects of story to our personal circumstances and identities.

“Your brain actually can’t tell the difference between hearing a story and experiencing it. Because of that personal connection, we become deeply emotionally attached.” – Susie Whitbrodt

Telling a story engages more areas of the brain than does the rote presentation of facts. Narrative conjures emotion, which in turn influences human behaviour. Once told, stories are not easily forgotten. Through narrative we learn, articulate values and norms, and importantly, we connect with each other. It is no surprise then, that the power of narrative is increasingly being explored at work.

In organisations, stories can be used to articulate and engage employees with strategy and visions of the future. They can bring company values to life too, suggests Tracey Swanepoel. In place of communicating values, real stories can be told of experiences within the organisation, thus bringing a value to life. In this way it becomes possible to demonstrate what each value means within a context that employees can relate to.

From an events perspective, presenters can employ the charms of narrative to secure a more profound and desirable impact with audiences (as can ‘Brands’). Through his research, cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner confirms that facts are 22 times more likely to be recalled when they have been wrapped up in story. Presenters could do well to lay out the story before producing a slide deck, to use plenty of visuals to prompt the progression from setting to characters, to conflict and finally to resolution.

Taking the research a level down, there are four neurotransmitters that stories can work to release, combined into what presentation coach David Phillips calls the “Angel Cocktail” (dopamine, oxytocin, endorphin) and “Devil Cocktail” (cortisol and adrenaline). A high concentration of the latter leads to intolerance, irritability, criticism, memory impairment and bad decisions. The Angel Cocktail, as the name suggests, solicits the desirable focus, motivation, generosity, trust, bonding and laughter that makes for engaged and productive work. Could this ancient human form of communicating be a key to transforming our daily experiences and actions?

Take yourself back to the last keynote you attended at a conference. What do you remember about it? What changed as a result of that event? Armed with more sophisticated levels of knowledge and thinking, perhaps it is time to harness the power of narrative in a far more pro-active way.

Experience the Angel and Devil cocktails in the fascinating TEDx Stockholm Talk by David Phillips here.