Sarah Breymeier
We’ve all sat in lectures that make our eyelids somehow get heavier…. and heavier… and heavier. BORING. BORING LECTURES. Right?
Obviously, we can’t control what the speaker is presenting, but if you are a presenter – whether it be to an audience at a meeting or your patients – you have to make it engaging. Stats are great, and they back up your claims so don’t eliminate them, but they don’t keep people hooked. Everyone loves a good story, though!
I’ve always preached, “Facts Tell, Stories Sell” (also, I’m not taking credit for that phrase – I heard it somewhere several years ago and it stuck… what can I say, I’m a sucker for rhymes”), but I was recently listening to a podcast that emphasized this concept. The science behind it was that our brains make sense of the world through narratives. I am currently on an internet hunt to remember what podcast that was (when I find it I’ll let you know!), but until then… check out this article:
How Stories Connect and Persuade Us: Unleashing the Brain Power of Narrative
So, if you are regularly creating content for a meeting, use this natural communication style to not only engage your audience, but to truly increase their understanding. I suppose it could be a domino effect – if I’m engaged, it’s more likely I’ll comprehend, right?
Not a speaker at meetings? That’s OK, because you know who you do speak to every single day? PATIENTS! You do not have to be a salesman to prescribe cash services (or any service for that matter) or OTCs like moisturizers and orthotics.
Instead of telling a patient about the mitochondria of a cell for laser therapy…. tell them about the patient who had to quit their local hiking club until he got 6 treatments of laser therapy; now he’s back on the trails living his best life… if you have a more emotional story than that, by all means, use it!