I like a good story. And I really enjoy a good storyteller.
If an author is a good storyteller, I will not put down his book until I finish it.
If the screen writer weaves a good tale, I will be living the parts portrayed by the actors.
If a speaker has some good yarns up his sleeve, he's got me wanting more when he's done.
Just a few weeks ago I was packing up my trade show booth after a Business Expo. My feet were tired from standing for hours and I was hungry. I wanted to get home, sit in front of the television and decompress.
I was putting my brochures into a box when an elderly gentleman walked up to me balancing a plate of food and brochures. "Young man, would you mind if I sat in one of your chairs?" he asked nodding with his head toward the chairs behind my table.
"No problem. I'd be glad to help." I reached and unstacked a chair thinking to myself that home just got a few more minutes away. I should not complain about the opportunity to show kindness -- it's a lost grace -- so I sucked it up, smiled, and set a chair down for my guest.
"Thank you." he said and parked himself down with a genuine smile.
"So, what brings you to the expo?" It did surprise me that this octogenarian would be roaming among the booths of businesses who were targeting young, vibrant, growing businesses.
He glanced up at my table and said, "The Growth Coach. What's that all about?"
"I work with small business owners helping them to stay focused and achieve success and balance in life." It rolled off my tongue like Homer Simpson falling down a mountainside. "But you look like you've got quite a story to tell. I'd like to hear it." I pulled up a chair prepared to listen. It felt good to get off my feet.
For the next 45 minutes I sat in the presence of greatness. This gentleman had started his own business "in the garage" and built it to multi-millions. He told how he had sold it to an international company. He spoke of his inventions. He told me how he was one of the first ever to employ commission-only salespeople. He wove into his biography the names of successful business people, some of who I also knew from previous business ventures. He told me about his family.
I had to know more and so I asked, "What do you do now?"
His eyebrows lifted up high and his steel gray eyes penetrated mine as if to determine if I really truly wanted to know. I did. With a passion coming from deep within he told me how excited he gets when he is surrounded by young people who want to do business. He meets with students in college and forms think tanks. They brainstorm ideas and business plans and then in some cases he funds them. "I want to give back and this is how I do it."
By this time all the other vendors had packed up and left. The hotel staff was taking down curtains and railings, stacking up chairs and vacuuming. I hadn't noticed till now and said, "It looks like they want us out of here."
"I guess so. No one has time to listen any more. But you did. I never got the chance to learn about the Growth Coach."
"The pleasure was truly mine. Thank you for telling me your story. Maybe we will meet again." He reached out his hand and shook mine. There was a moment there that I felt like I was touching a generation of business greatness. I did not want to lose it. I wished my heart could snap a picture of this conversation.
Turns out, I did get a photo of a different kind.
Annette Simmons is the author of The Story Factor. She believes that telling a story is the best way to persuade and motivate people. One of her contentions is that we are so bombarded with data and statistics that we no longer trust them. "People want to believe what a leader has to say, to have faith. It is faith that moves mountains, not facts." Simmons defends that it is the well told story that connects in such a way so as to inspire and influence.
What is your story?
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