October 11, 2024 / Esther Choy

Valerie’s team was ready for the presentation. They demonstrated their knowledge and experience, relying on logic and facts. Valerie felt confident that they outpaced all the competitors in the expertise needed to win this $50M project.

Since the procurement process was public, Valerie was able to watch the other teams present their pitches. She saw the interviewers lean forward, engaging with a competitor’s business story about their founding. The other company was not as experienced, but they were passionate. Their story showed their drive and creativity. The interview panel connected with them, and ultimately chose them for the job. Though Valerie’s team had the expertise, they had failed to connect with the interviewers.

Leaders tell business stories because people need both fact and emotion to be persuaded to take action. Business storytelling is the strategic sequencing of fact and emotion.

What’s the secret to telling a riveting business story that captures your audience’s emotions? Conflict, contrast and contradiction. You must wrap the facts you want your audience to know into a story with elements of conflict, contrast, or contradiction. These elements build tension, which pique your audience’s curiosity and engagement. At the same time, a well-told business story helps you share more than just the facts. Stories reveal character.

Conflict

Conflict is a classic story element in any business story. Every hero faces an obstacle standing in the way of their ultimate goal. The wolf stands in the way between Little Red and her grandmother. The mountain stands before the mountain climber.

While business leaders may not be characters in Greek epics or fairy tales, they are very familiar with conflict. Every business and every career is rife with conflict. The key to great business storytelling is knowing how to use these conflicts to share what you want your audience to understand. Here’s a leadership story that successfully uses conflict:

When I implemented a no-haggle pricing model at our car dealership, I was convinced that making the process straightforward would resonate with our hard-working customers. We launched a ten-day money-back guarantee and clear, up-front pricing. However, the response wasn’t what we expected. Customer satisfaction scores dropped, and reviews indicated that people feared they weren’t getting the best deal possible.

This story highlights the conflict of trying to fix one problem, but creating an unexpected one. With this succinct introduction to this conflict, listeners are intrigued. We want to know how the storyteller overcame this unexpected challenge. Not only will we learn about the storyteller’s business experience, we will learn about what kind of leader he is, his values and character.

Contradiction

Contradiction is when two elements of a story oppose each other. Contradiction builds tension in a story by asking the listener to discern how these two opposing forces will be resolved. Here’s an example:

I got my first compound bow as a birthday present. Little did I know this gift would teach me lessons far beyond the archery range. I spent countless hours honing my skills, shooting field points into the dead stop in our backyard. Finally, the day arrived. I loaded up my old pickup and drove a few miles to my hunting spot. I moved in silence, until I heard the sound of deer. My heart quickened.

I crept forward, positioning myself behind some junipers. The doe moved toward me. I knew I could take a confident shot.

But then I saw twin fawns following close behind. I lowered my bow. I was a mother of two toddlers. I felt a strong connection to the deer at that moment.

That moment taught me there’s a difference between a good opportunity and the right opportunity. 

The story builds up the tension by carefully demonstrating just how ready the storyteller was to take the shot. When the fawns appear, the storyteller reveals an apparent contradiction: even though everything was poised for her to take the shot, she chooses not to.

Contrast

Similar to contradiction, contrast juxtaposes two dispersant elements to produce tension. Here’s an example:

I used to be a portfolio manager at a large investment firm. I left to pour concrete and fix A/C units. 

By contrasting a career in finance to pouring concrete, the audience is intrigued to understand the journey of this business leader and reasons why he left a prestigious job for something that seems menial. We wonder why he did this and if it was worth it. His story goes on to satisfy his listeners by providing additional context and then answering their questions:

Though I came from a blue collar family, I attended a top university and landed an investment job. But I soon realized it didn’t satisfy my desire to make a lasting, positive impact.

So, I started a new business with the idea that I could buy and run great small businesses. I bought a concrete business, then some small HVAC companies, and then a landscaping business. I couldn’t be further from my old job. I also couldn’t be more satisfied. 

Today, my business owns over 20 companies across three states, generating $4M in annual revenue. We’re helping businesses steward their legacies and take care of their employees.

A banner describing Story Lab, a complimentary service to workshop stories with a facilitator.

The Takeaway

While every business leader is well-versed in facing and overcoming conflict, contradiction and contrast, it takes practice to use these elements in stories. Dana Maor, Senior Partner at McKinsey, has suggested that it’s every leader’s job to tell stories and if a leader doesn’t feel very good at storytelling, they must sign up for a good storytelling workshop.

Practicing these skills is worth it. KJ, a director of professional services, AI Solutions at Google invested in his growth as a storytelling leader and quickly saw the impact. “Inevitably I know so much more than our audience and storytelling is the most efficient and effective way to persuade others to see things your way,” he said. “It allows us to convey broad and deep concepts with sound bites, retaining the essence of the matter, but in a format and approach that connects with the audience.”

For your next presentation, first think about what your audience needs to know in order to take action. Then think about a story with a conflict, contradiction or contrast that will help them get there.

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Esther Choy

Esther Choy founded Leadership Story Lab in 2010 to help others leverage the art of storytelling to create extraordinary opportunities.

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"This is an amazing and insightful post! I hadn’t thought of that so you broadened my perspective. I always appreciate your insight!" - Dan B.

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