SD #45 | Vulnerability: The Overlooked Storytelling Tip that Creates Connection and Trust

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Read Time: 4.0 minutes 

What’s the Tip?

One business storytelling tip that many people may not be aware of is the power of vulnerability. While storytelling often involves presenting a polished and confident image, incorporating vulnerability into your narrative can have a profound impact on your audience. Successful leaders know this, and they not only incorporate it into their storytelling, but in their business culture, as well.

Sharing personal challenges, failures, or moments of self-doubt can make your story more relatable and authentic. It creates an emotional connection with your listeners, as they can empathize with your struggles and see themselves in your journey. 

How Do You Use It?

Many companies make the mistake of being positive, positive, positive in their storytelling in a way that puts them in the best light possible. But something about that just doesn’t feel right. Does anyone live a life that is positive, positive, positive, with no challenges, no obstacles, no downturns, no hitting rock bottom…ever? Storytelling that’s all positive is not relatable, credible, or authentic. It’s just not how we live our lives.

Think about it this way: who are you more likely to root for in a story? Someone who’s living a life where everything is awesome? Or someone who’s had to face a big obstacle and still found a way to overcome it? Let’s face it—more often than not, we root for the underdog. So, how do you use vulnerability in your business storytelling? This is how. You use struggle strategically. You use struggle to create common ground where your customer thinks, “Yeah, I’ve been there…” They’re nodding yes instead of nodding off.

By incorporating vulnerability into your business storytelling, you can create a deeper connection with your audience, increase their engagement, and leave a lasting impression.

What's an Example? 

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, has openly shared his personal journey and the challenges he faced in his career. In his book, "Hit Refresh," he discusses his initial struggles, doubts, and the difficult decisions he had to make while leading Microsoft's transformation. By revealing his vulnerability and discussing both successes and failures, Nadella has not only connected with employees and customers but has also fostered a culture of empathy and continuous learning within the company.

Now, how to you put vulnerability into action? One thing you can do to transform vulnerability into a skill involves social media. Get comfortable taking your followers behind the scenes in your posts. Reveal yourself to people, even when you think you’re not at your best. Not in a way that’s damaging to your reputation, professionally or personally, but in a way that’s affirming of your humanity. In other words, share photos or video, even on bad hair days! Vulnerability = relatability.

Practicing vulnerability is not always easy to do! But it’s one of those things where, the more you do it, the better and more comfortable you’ll get at it. Not only will you and your message resonate better because you’re more relatable, you’ll also be far more productive when you’re not focused on perfection.

Social media icon Gary Vaynerchuk offers some good advice on how to do this. When it comes to content, document, don’t create. Don’t just show the finished product. Show what went into the finished product. This is how to gain customers, but more importantly, it’s how you gain ambassadors and fans. 

What's the Benefit to You?

We can actually cite 5 benefits to using vulnerability in your storytelling:

1. Building Trust and Authenticity: Vulnerability creates an authentic connection with your audience. By sharing personal challenges, failures, or doubts, you show your human side and demonstrate that you're willing to be open and honest. This builds trust and credibility, as people appreciate authenticity and are more likely to engage with your message.
2. Enhancing Emotional Engagement: Vulnerability evokes emotions and creates a deeper emotional connection with your audience. When you share personal stories that touch on struggles or triumphs, it resonates with people on a human level. Emotionally engaged listeners are more likely to remember and connect with your story, leading to a lasting impact.
3. Inspiring and Motivating Others: When you share stories of overcoming obstacles or personal growth, you inspire others to do the same. Vulnerability in storytelling allows you to demonstrate resilience, perseverance, and the ability to learn from failures. By showcasing your journey, you motivate and empower others to take risks, face challenges, and strive for success.
4. Fostering Empathy and Understanding: Vulnerability helps create empathy and understanding among your audience. When you share personal experiences, it allows others to see different perspectives, challenges, and triumphs. This fosters a sense of empathy, as people can relate to your struggles and learn from your experiences. It promotes a supportive and inclusive environment.
5. Setting Yourself Apart: In a competitive business landscape, vulnerability can help set you apart from others. It takes courage to share personal stories and vulnerabilities, and by doing so, you differentiate yourself as a leader who is willing to be authentic and transparent. This can attract attention, create memorable connections, and make you more relatable to clients, employees, and partners.

Vulnerability demonstrates your resilience, courage, and ability to overcome obstacles. It humanizes you and builds trust with your audience, making them more likely to engage with your story and your brand. By embracing vulnerability in your business storytelling, you can reap these benefits and create a compelling narrative that engages, inspires, and connects with your audience on a deeper level. 

TL:DR 

1. Incorporating vulnerability into your narrative can have a profound impact on your audience. Sharing personal challenges, failures, or moments of self-doubt can make your story more relatable and authentic.

2. Vulnerability creates an emotional connection with your listeners, as they can empathize with your struggles and see themselves in your journey.

3. Reveal yourself to people, even when you think you’re not at your best. Not in a way that’s damaging to your reputation, professionally or personally, but in a way that’s affirming of your humanity.

4. By embracing vulnerability in your business storytelling, you can reap these benefits and create a compelling narrative that engages, inspires, and connects with your audience on a deeper level.

     

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