Why Story Should Answer the Most Common Question You’ll Hear.

WHY? WHY? WHY?

Anyone who has young children will tell you the same thing.

The most common question you get asked is, ‘Why?’

‘We’re going to listen to Aunty Doris sing Bach on Sunday.’ ‘Why?’

‘There are 365 days in three out of four years’ ‘Why?’

‘If you don’t do your homework there’ll be no biscuits after supper.’ ‘Why?’

And it doesn't get any better as we get older.

‘We’re doing a beauty parade for approved suppliers.’ ‘Why?’

‘You need to book an extra hour for the board meeting.’ ‘Why?’

‘We’ve decided to stop putting biscuits in the client rooms.’ ‘Why?’

BUT WHAT IS WHY?

That one word, ‘Why’, is essentially asking one of two things?

1. What is the motivation for what is happening?
2. What is the cause and effect that has led to the current decision or set of circumstances?

I am going to suggest that a story is the best way to answer both of these.

SHOW ME WHY

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.

The best way to get your message across is to show rather than tell.

Don’t just give the facts. Bring them to life in some form of story.

I believe this is particularly true if you are answering a question that begins with ‘Why.’

Anyone who asks a ‘Why’ question will probably fall into one of two camps.

1. They have made some presuppositions and are already telling themselves a story about why things are as they are.
2. They will be a complete novice and need a simple explanation.

Therefore you need to create either a better story than the one they are currently telling themselves or tell a simple story that explains things clearly.

LET NETFLIX ANSWER THE ‘WHY.’

As my colleague Neil Bearden says, storytelling at its simplest is about the transference of imagery from your head into the head of the listener.

It is about building the Netflix of the Mind.

And if you are going to build this Netflix you need some very clear components.

You need characters in a time and place performing actions to achieve a goal.

In other words you need Who, When, Where, What and How.

Now those character will of course have motivations. And that is where ‘Why’ will come into play.

So, whether you are explaining why an audit has gone out to tender, why there are no more biscuits or why the year is the length it is you will have more success if you wrap the motivation around character, context and action.

In other words you will have more success if you answer in a short story form.

Give them the Who, When, Where, What and How in order to show the motivational or causal ‘Why.’

It will simplify complexity and will stand a better chance of ousting a pre-existing story.

And just to clarify, the sun and the earth can be active characters in a story just as much as Aunty Doris.

Happy storytelling.