We’re all wired for stories. Long before spreadsheets, PowerPoints and stakeholder dashboards, humans gathered around campfires and talked. We swapped tales, of challenge, triumph, and the odd woolly mammoth encounter. Why? Because stories make sense of the world. They help us connect, empathise and remember.
Fast forward to your next stakeholder meeting. No campfire, perhaps, but still the same opportunity: to create connection, meaning and momentum through storytelling.
Why stories matter (more than ever). Stakeholder engagement can easily slip into ‘corporate mode’, polished decks, cautious language, and a subtle fear of saying the wrong thing. But the magic happens when you ditch the jargon and invite real stories. Stories reveal values, spark emotions, and remind people they’re part of something bigger.
And here’s the kicker: people don’t buy into plans; they buy into people. When you facilitate storytelling, you move from informing to inspiring.
The art of facilitating storytelling
Set the scene: create psychological safety. Before anyone opens up, they need to know it’s safe to do so. Your job as a facilitator is to create that safety net.
- Model openness. Share a story yourself, one that’s real, not perfect. Vulnerability invites vulnerability.
- Ditch judgement. The quickest way to silence a room is with criticism. Instead, respond with curiosity: “That’s interesting, tell me more.”
- Agree some ground rules. Confidentiality, respect and time to think, the holy trinity of storytelling spaces.
Top tip: Think of yourself as the ‘chief vibe officer’. If you radiate warmth, enthusiasm and genuine interest, people will match your energy.
Start small: stories hide in the everyday. Not everyone thinks they have a story worth telling. That’s your cue to help them find it. Ask simple, specific prompts like:
- “Tell me about a time you felt proud of what you achieved.”
- “When have you seen collaboration really work?”
- “What’s a moment when you realised why this project matters?”
These small sparks often ignite the biggest flames of insight.
Top tip: Don’t rush to fill silences. Give people time to think, that pause is where meaning brews.
Listen like you mean it. If you take one thing from this article, make it this: the magic isn’t in the telling, it’s in the listening.
Active listening is your secret superpower. Lean in, nod, paraphrase. “So what I’m hearing is…” shows you’re genuinely engaged. The more you listen, the more stories surface.
And when someone shares something powerful, don’t rush to the next agenda item. Pause. Let it land. That’s the gold dust moment where connection deepens.
Use the ‘hero’s journey’ frame. Every great story follows a pattern, a character faces a challenge, overcomes obstacles and returns transformed. Stakeholder stories are no different. Help people map their experiences:
- Who’s the hero? (Hint: It’s often the team, community or customer.)
- What was the challenge?
- What actions did they take?
- What was the outcome or learning?
This structure brings clarity and keeps the storytelling purposeful, not self-indulgent.
Top tip: Encourage balance, stories of success are great, but tales of struggle and learning are even richer.
Make it interactive. Storytelling doesn’t have to be a one-way broadcast. Turn it into a dialogue. Try techniques like:
- Story circles: small groups share a 2-minute story on a theme, then reflect together.
- Story harvesting: capture common threads, themes or lessons across stories.
- Story walls: get participants to jot down moments, quotes or insights on cards and cluster them visually.
The aim isn’t to create a script, but to build a shared narrative, a tapestry of perspectives that everyone feels part of.
Bottle the magic. Stories fade fast if you don’t capture them. Make it part of your process:
- Record short audio or video snippets (with permission).
- Summarise key insights in human language, not management-speak.
- Share them across teams, a story told twice is a story amplified.
Because here’s the thing: a story that stays in one room is just a moment. A story that travels becomes a movement.
Be the story spark. Facilitating storytelling isn’t about being the loudest voice in the room. It’s about being the spark that gets others to light up. Remember, everyone has a story worth telling. Your role is to create the conditions where they feel safe enough, heard enough and inspired enough to share it.
So next time you’re in that meeting, skip the jargon, ask the right question, and listen deeply. Because behind every stakeholder is a human being with a cracking story waiting to be told, and it might just change the way everyone sees the world.
Rapport North 