Thursday, March 30, 2017

How Storytelling Captures Us -- Emotionally and Scientifically

My roles as  trainer and coach include frequent storytelling -- sharing anecdotes, experiences, and insights with others.  Scientists have found that the skill of storytelling is no simply a 'soft skills'.  According to findings of the National Institute of Health and other such organizations, there are physiological responses occurring during interactions between a trainer/coach and her audience/client. The Institute found that a neurological process call neuro-coupling takes place every time we engage verbally. 



This is how it works: a speaker (such as a teacher, coach, motivating speaker, or trainer), think about information and verbally communicates that information to an audience of students, clients, conference attendees, or others.)  We'll call them the 'listener'.  While the speaker is speaking, the listener's  brain activity will mirror the brain activity of the speaker.   Their brain activity starts to match. Essentially their minds begin to react similarly to the information being shared.   That's neuro-coupling.

The US National Library of Medicine published that the greater the coupling (the more the brains are in sync) the greater the comprehension and retention will be for the listener.  Therefore, effective storytelling that grabs the audience, keeps their attention, and impacts them intellectually is crucial for lasting learning.  The National Academy of Sciences reports that the same coupling doesn't happen between two individuals who are both reading the same story.  Their brain activity is not necessarily similar and the two of them will not tend to have the same level of comprehension.
 

It seems, that neuro-coupling feeds on the emotions or sentiments shared from the speaker to the listener.  If a coach shares a story that is sad, she needs to convey that sadness and the listener will perceive it too.  If the listener were simply reading that same story, they might not pick up on the sadness, and might instead perceive boredom, disinterest, or frustration.  If a trainer shares an insight that is exciting, excitement should be relayed through his speech so that the listener will be excited as well.  
Think about stories you've heard that caused you goosebumps, made you teary eyed, or left you laughing out loud. Chances are, the speaker evoked those responses as they were telling the story. Storytelling can affect change, drive effort, and inspire action.  I'm glad the scientists have finally discovered what I've know my entire career:  There is power in the story.