How do you engage and inspire learners with stories in your training?

1 Why stories matter

Stories are not just entertaining, they are also educational. Stories help learners to connect with the content, to remember the key points, and to apply the learning to their own situations. Stories also appeal to different learning styles, such as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. By using stories, you can make your training more engaging, relevant, and memorable.

2 How to find stories

You don't need to be a professional storyteller to use stories in your training. You can find stories from various sources, such as your own experience, your colleagues, your clients, your industry, or your research. The key is to choose stories that are relevant to your learning objectives, your audience, and your context. You can also adapt stories to suit your needs, as long as you maintain the authenticity and credibility of the original source.

3 How to structure stories

A good story has a clear structure that helps the learners to follow the plot and understand the message. A simple structure that you can use is the STAR method, which stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. You start by setting the scene and describing the problem or challenge. Then you explain the goal or desired outcome. Next, you describe the actions or steps that were taken to solve the problem or achieve the goal. Finally, you reveal the outcome or result, and how it relates to the learning objective.

4 How to deliver stories

The way you deliver your stories can make a big difference in how they impact your learners. You need to use your voice, your body language, and your visuals to create interest and emotion. You also need to consider the timing and the length of your stories, and how they fit into the overall flow of your training. You want to use stories to support and enhance your content, not to distract or overwhelm your learners.

5 How to involve learners

Stories are not only for telling, they are also for listening and sharing. You can involve your learners in your stories by asking them questions, inviting them to share their opinions or experiences, or challenging them to apply the learning to their own situations. You can also encourage your learners to create their own stories, either individually or in groups, and to present them to the rest of the class. This way, you can foster creativity, collaboration, and reflection among your learners.

6 How to evaluate stories

Stories are not only for learning, they are also for assessing. You can use stories to evaluate your learners' understanding, retention, and application of the content. You can ask your learners to recall, summarize, or analyze the stories that you used in your training. You can also ask them to demonstrate how they would use the learning in their own stories or scenarios. By using stories as assessment tools, you can measure your learners' progress and provide feedback in a meaningful and engaging way.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?