I’ve been very open that my business development director, Ali, and I have had a few bumps in the road. We would both attest that what has kept us working together, rowing together and seeing a future together is that we have shared our stories with one another.
Our stories have become part of the glue that has kept us together when sometimes it would have been easier to throw in the towel. That’s because as human beings, when you understand where someone is coming from, what motivates them, why they’re acting a certain way, you have a lot more grace, tolerance and understanding for them.
Storytelling in a culture can build trust quickly like nothing else can. When people bond personally — and appropriately – in the workplace, it absolutely brings about the trust and connection so important for success.
For many people, the workplace is their place for community, but community is not just built by crunching numbers and completing tasks. Community is built through relationships. And as human beings, we are hard wired to build relationships and our connection through story.
A study by Google, called Project Aristotle, proved that human bonds matter at work as much as anywhere else – especially when building successful teams.
In “The Future of Leadership Is Kindness,” the author cites years of Gallup data and interviews with 25 million people. “Science also tells us we can retain people by having a healthy, supportive, empathetic and highly communicative environment around us. It’s common sense, now more than ever before, as companies push to sustain productivity during the pandemic and with an ongoing remote workforce.”
Story Hours for Team Bonding
One thing I recommend for my clients, particularly in a remote working environment, is to have story hours. Designate one person or a few people each week to share their story.
It can be as simple as sharing why they work at this company, why they chose this career path, how they see their role as part of the team. These stories bring people closer and can lead to sharing deeper stories that help colleagues understand each other even more.
Doing deliberate story time is super important to the overall culture of your workplace. The more geographically remote your team is, the more intentional and strategic you need to be.
If you need help building your Story, give us a shout. Let’s start a conversation!
