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 | | Whoever Tells the Best Story Wins: How to Use Your Own Stories to Communicate with Power and Impact by Annette Simmons ISBN-10: 9780814409145 ISBN-10: 0-8144-0914-8 ISBN-13: 9780814409145 ISBN-13: 978-0-8144-0914-5 Hardcover 2007-05-16 AMACOM Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description Story telling is a powerful communications tool that is becoming more and more recognized in the business community. These stories are not the usual speech openers or ice breakers, but stories that will influence others to trust the storyteller and shape decisions and actions that are important to both individuals and organizations. As the author explains, we've been conditioned to believe that business communication should be clear, rational, objective, with no place for emotion or subjective thinking. Not true. The most powerful, persuasive communication has a human element: "Communication can't feel genuine without the distinctive personality of a human being to provide context. You need to show up when you communicate - the real you, not the idealized you.The missing ingredient in most failed communication is humanity. This is an easy fix. In order to blend humanity into every communication you send, all you have to do is tell more stories and bingo - you just showed up." This book teaches readers how to tell six kinds of stories. Part 1 explains how to shift from normal "business thinking" to story thinking. Part 2 describes the six types of story, and walks readers through the process of finding their own inspiring stories. Part 3 outlines five practical principles that maximize story as a tool to understand as well as persuade. Readers can also make journal entries to capture and develop story ideas. The book is - naturally - full of inspiring stories (some very funny). The style is lively and personal, yet eloquent and sophisticated. | ||
Reviews | ||
here's how to find stories--and tell them! Simmons has once again shown us the pathway to stories. This book is a great follow up to The Story Factor. The Story Factor told us what and why. This book moves us down the path of how and where. One of the hardest things is finding stories and telling them at the right time. Simmons walks the reader through this process. You come away with ideas, inspiration and stories. | ||
Simmons writes an EXTREMELY HELPFUL book! This book was very helpful! I picked it up to see what some in the "industry" are doing with storytelling in the workplace. Those in the church have always known that storytelling was how great leaders led, taught and inspired. But interestingly enough, it is not how we were taught to preach. Simmons leads you on a step by step process to find stories, tell stories and evaluate how and in what context those stories can be used. | ||
Take your presentation, and your audience, to the next level I had been presenting a new employee program for about a year with good results, but never feeling like the audience was fully getting the passion and the spirit for the material that I had, and thought it deserved. After reading "Whoever Tells the Best Story Wins" (which contains several flat-out hilarious stories as well),I added several short personal anecdotes to my presentation, and a full-fledged 3 minute story as a closing to illustrate my point. The difference was immediate and amazing. There were more tears and laughter in that auditorium than in Oprah's audience. I was the most amazed of all. What a change! Afterwards, many participants felt at liberty to tell me their similar and highly personal stories. That's when it dawned on me. Everybody DOES have the potential to be a story teller. Every single person there had their own story. The difference was that I knew how to find mine, develop them, and tell them, all because of this book. Buy it, follow the steps, you won't be sorry. This is the best money I've spent on professional development in a decade. | ||
empty This is the worst book I've ever bought from amazon. I strongly encourage people to "search inside" before buying. Scan the first or second chapter for anything of value. You won't find anything. The text (what little there is) focuses entirely on convincing you that you should tell more stories. It does this by making the same few trivial points over and over. Clearly, you don't need to be convinced of this, since you already purchased the book. With regard to actually learning to tell effective stories (the purported purpose of the book) you will be disappointed. As a point of further irritation, many of the pages in the book are blank. (supposedly so you can write your own stories inside) Do you really need to spend $14 for a hardcover notebook? (Hint: You don't.) Furthermore, the last 7 pages of every chapter are exactly the same. (I'm not kidding.) This book is content-free. | ||
Good for beginners This book is probably most beneficial to leaders who have not typically thought or expressed themselves in "story." It's encouraging and offers solid ideas for those just starting to craft their own presentations. But storytelling right-brainers -- who may be attracted by the book's title -- likely will not find this book helpful. This book is very basic. | ||