Communication is an essential, ubiquitous function of our daily lives, especially at work. And, listening to someone who is a great communicator is a joy. What do they do that makes it work?

Oh the joy and delight of management speak. How is it possible (over two decades since The Office held a mirror up to us all) that words like 'operationalise' and 'going forward' and TLAs (three letter acronyms) are still peppered relentlessly in into how we speak and write in the workplace? 

Great leaders, great colleagues, great suppliers, great sales teams, great friends…

What’s one thing they all have in common?

They’re all great communicators.

And one of the most satisfying and successful facets of a great communicator is that they share their ideas and projects well. We get it, and want to be involved in some way.

Why is it that some people seem to speak with great clarity? I don’t mean their diction, pruh-nuhn-see-ay-shn or projection, but rather that their content comes through with no space for misinterpretation, misconstruction or misunderstanding.

‘Just share the narrative,’ we are constantly advised. ‘No! What you’re doing is a massive data dump. Try telling them the story...’

Well, yes, that would obviously be hugely beneficial if only we knew how it could be done. What are the key ingredients that make up a story? What should our content be?

What is it that makes people speak so formally at work?

Does it help us connect to the speaker, and through them to their message?

Or, should we maybe be more authentic if we want our communication at work to work as well as when we’re talking with friends and loved ones…

Should we spend our time when preparing to share messages honing the perfect script, or is there a better use of it that will reap the rewards of being heard, remembered and believed?

Everybody wants to use storytelling to improve their communication, but what does that actually entail? Well, not using words like 'entail' for a start, and choosing a more spoken (as opposed to written) form of language.

We can all think of things not to include, but on a more constructive note, let's look at what should go in.

In Part 2 of his interview with Long 6lack, '3 Steps To Giving The Perfect Presentation', Josh gives specific tips to help you structure what you say, break away from jargon, and present your authentic self when speaking.

What is it that makes people want to listen to us? What enables them to hear us, understand us, remember us (and what we said) and still leave them wanting more?

Neither charm nor charisma can pull it off alone.

Using your innate capacity for storytelling, however, will do it.

Following our initial 10 short, written Storytelling Bites we thought we'd mix it up this week with Part 1 of the interview one of our founding partners, Josh Gaillemin.  Watch to find out how to speak so others listen.

Too often, the mistake in a presentation or update at a meeting is that the speaker is heading in the wrong direction. The information is static. No one's lining up at the starting line, the baton is dropped and the finish line keeps moving.

Any idea, event, project, change, set of data is a story. A story that - if we are going to understand it and connect with it well - needs to be told in terms of individuals, groups and the biggest context.

You’ll find 3 Scales in fairy tales, Shakespeare, the news… and you need to use them too. 

One of the best aspects of storytelling is spontaneity: it's when you are alive and responsive to the moment, your audience and your own interest in what you are talking about and yet you are faithful to the purpose and intention of your communication.

You spent an absolute age preparing for the presentation, it should have been perfect, but it tanked.

So, with all that forethought and preparation, why did it go so wrong? And is there a simple way to make it go right, or at the very least, less wrong?

Some people just seem to get it right when they speak or present. The enthusiasm is infectious, the amount of detail is spot on, they come across as extremely knowledgeable and yet wear their learning lightly, they’re authoritative, they listen to us and take into account our thoughts and feelings on the subject… 

We’ve all heard countless presentations, updates, 5-minute slots at meetings which, as they conclude, we absent-mindedly think to ourselves (assuming we’ve managed to pay attention to the end) “What’s that got to do with me?” or, worse still, “Why am I even here?”

There is a certain something that some people have that draws us to them, makes us want to listen to them and to give them the time they need to express themselves because they do it so well.

That certain something is an ephemeral quality often described as presence.

We experience the world around us through our senses, and descriptive language is how the senses exist in our language and communication.

To not use descriptive language is to miss out on an essential tool that gets us understood, believed and remembered.

Authenticity is rightfully seen as an essential aspect of good leadership. An authentic connection builds trust, believability, and a desire by others to be on our side. 

Life is chaotic and narrative structure makes sense of it. 

Whether we need to understand what happened, how and why, or take stock of the present situation, or to plan ahead, to anticipate and be ready, narrative structure – the construction and strategic relationship of characters, actions, time and setting - allows us to make sense and to remember.