It's the old story...

This is a true story. It happened to a friend of a friend of mine...

I've been thinking about stories. Did you know that at least half of the world's population prefer concrete methods of learning such as stories and symbols? Yet many people, when they try to communicate interculturally, use very Westernized methods like well-rounded arguments with 3 points and a series of pieces of evidence. Then they wonder why their audience switches off!

I'm used to communicating like this - I can write essays and debate issues, but I've realised I need to become a much better storyteller if I am to communicate to people of other cultures.

So, what makes a good storyteller?

A few things I've noticed about good storytellers is they have a sense of humour, they are attentive to visual details in their story (eg. someone's facial expression, or the way they walk), they can communicate feelings and moods really well, and they use tone, silence and facial expressions to create suspense and expectation.

What do you think?