What's Your Story?

OK, so I am still reading Daniel Pink's book A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future. I've been reading it for a month or so now. I wouldn't necessarily classify it as a "page-turner," but the author DOES make you think. He brings up great points, and has what I believe are profound insights into how we are moving from the Information Age into the Conceptual Age.

One of the ways we can thrive as we acclimate ourselves to the "new world" into which we are evolving is to become story-tellers. Why? Because, as Pink points out so poignantly,

"an English-speaking 13-year old in Zaire who's connected to the internet can find the current temperature in Brussels, or the closing price of IBM stock or the name of Winston Churchill's second finance minister as quickly and easily as the head librarian at Cambridge University...but it has enormous consequences for how we work and live. When facts become so widely available and instantly accessible, each one becomes less valuable. What begins to matter more is the ability to place these facts in context and to deliver them with emotional impact."

Story.

What separates us as individuals from everyone else? Our hair color? Nope. Our education? Nope. Our income level? Some may think so, but that's also a big N-O. It's our stories.

And, the greatest marketers in the world know exactly how to build a product or experience around a story. It's an absolute MUST in a culture that is easily distracted and has an insatiable thirst for something NEW and DIFFERENT.

It's been noted that we remember:

• 10 percent of what we read.
• 20 percent of what we see.
• 30 percent of what we hear.
• 40 percent of what we do.
• 100 percent of what we FEEL!

So, whether it's building personal relationships, forging business partnerships, or communicating with an audience - remember that stories are the most effective means to making a lasting connection with someone.