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Storytelling for Leaders: How Stories Shape Thinking, Build Trust, and Boost Performance

  • Writer: Dominique Giger
    Dominique Giger
  • Jun 18
  • 4 min read

Updated: 5 days ago

Black letters spell "Tell the Story" on a white wall, with a black horizontal line beneath, creating a minimalist and motivational vibe.
Stories inspire. Picture from Unsplash.com by Jon Tyson

In meetings we present numbers. In strategic papers we outline goals. But when we truly want to move people, we need something else: stories.


Whether in the boardroom or at a startup meeting, leaders are discovering that while emails may inform, only stories truly inspire and unleash energy. And this isn’t just a feeling - it’s backed by neuroscience.


Storytelling isn’t “soft” – it’s strategic

Research by Robert Wright and Jacqueline Dziak clearly shows: stories are particularly effective for communicating the “why” behind a business strategy, a team’s mission, or a shared value system. And this “why” is the crucial lever for engagement and high performance.


Gallup’s long-standing Q12 studies on employee engagement confirm: inspired employees who find meaning and purpose in their work perform better, are more loyal, and are more likely to go the extra mile to help their company succeed. This sense of meaning isn’t created by KPIs or strategy documents - it’s fueled by powerful stories that explain why the work matters.


The “Angel’s Cocktail” in the brain

Why do stories work so powerfully? The answer lies in the brain. Neuroscientific research by Paul Zak and others shows: emotionally compelling stories trigger the release of oxytocin - the hormone responsible for trust, generosity, and empathy. In experiments, participants who watched a moving story donated significantly more money - even when it came at their own expense.


In his talk The Magical Science of Storytelling, David JP Phillips describes three key neurotransmitters activated by storytelling:

  • Dopamine (for focus, motivation, and memory),

  • Oxytocin (for trust and connection),

  • Endorphins (for relaxation and creativity).


This combination - what Phillips calls the “Angel’s Cocktail” - creates ideal conditions for learning, engagement, and collaboration.


In contrast, the so-called “Devil’s Cocktail” - a mix of cortisol and adrenaline released under stress - leads to irritability, memory loss, and poor decision-making. Storytelling is an antidote: it calms the system, opens the mind, and makes listeners more receptive.


The impact on organizations

From an organizational psychology perspective, storytelling is far more than a “nice to have.” In their white paper Storytelling as a Primary Leadership Tool, Wright and Dziak demonstrate how stories contribute to employee motivation, cultural integration, and meaning-making.


They identify three main functions of internal communication:

  1. Informing → What are we doing?

  2. Coordinating → How are we doing it?

  3. Inspiring → Why are we doing it?


While emails and reports are suitable for the first two, truly inspiring others requires something else: stories.


To move people to high performance, you need to create a sense of purpose and belonging. Strong narratives do exactly that - they connect strategy with meaning.


Why this works - even for rational audiences

What if you come from a scientific or technical background and feel uneasy with emotional rhetoric?


Precisely for analytical leaders, storytelling is highly relevant. Neuroscience shows that listening to a good story activates not just language centers but an entire network in the brain - regions responsible for emotion, empathy, and self-reflection.


In this sense, storytelling isn’t a “soft skill.” It’s a high-level cognitive tool - and a powerful way to create clarity and meaning in complex, uncertain environments. Stories simulate real-life experience, offer a sense of control, and evoke emotional resonance.


To lead, you must be able to tell a story

As humans, we constantly look for patterns and meaning - in the world, in our work, and in our teams. Stories provide exactly that: structure with meaning. And they’re so powerful because they are deeply embedded in our brains.


Storytelling is a highly effective tool for conveying complex content in a way that is understandable, motivating, and meaningful.


It connects strategy with emotion, data with significance, goals with values.


Every leader has more stories than they think. Those who take the time to reflect on their own experiences - from successes to setbacks - discover a hidden treasure. And those who craft and intentionally share those stories win the game of trust, vision, and transformation.


Brown leather sofa below a collage of open books on a white wall. Text reads "Everyone has a story." Warm, cozy atmosphere.
Every person has more stories at their disposal than they think. Picture from Unsplash.com by Martin Maegan

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