Did you hear the one about the Chemist …

Hay tip to @AStoriedCareer on Twitter for highlighting an excellent blog by Marguerite Granat entitled ‘The Chemistry of Storytelling’ in which she gives at least 8 reasons why stories are so influencial in our behaviour and decision making.

If I had to pick the one I like most its the one on learning:

We don’t learn best by hearing a theory or concept, we learn best by hearing stories that demonstrate the concept.

I am always intrigued why so many people will read Marguerites blog, nod and agree with each statement and then go back and not use story in their day job, building slides full of bullet points, writing 40 page case studies and assimilating fact after fact about their new product.

I am in the middle of writing a speech for my sons wedding at the weekend and for months I have threatened to do my Tim Vine comedy tribute and see how many jokes I can squeeze into five minutes. Interestingly as I searched the usual sites for short jokes the overwhelming message from comments on the sites is that:

A wedding speech should be a personal story, short and sweet, no-one wants to hear ridiculous made up telegrams and jests about it being an institution.

So a story it will be, with just a few Tim Vine style jokes, perhaps even ‘pen behind the ear’ to keep me and my little brother happy.