The So What Strategy Revised Edition

by Davina Stanley, Gerard Castles

Overview

So What?
Where's this going?
Why do I need to know this?

These are some of the most unnerving questions in business. How do you make sure this doesn't happen to you? And how do you make sure business audiences actually hear what you have to say?

Good communication is crucial for business success. Whether you are an experienced executive or a new business graduate, sooner or later you will need to present your point of view on an important issue. But how can you take what is often a complex set of ideas and organise them into a clear and compelling argument that your audience - the CEO, the Board, peers - understands straight away?

In the revised edition of this practical book, Davina Stanley and Gerard Castles - communication strategists with decades of experience working with everyone from graduates through to the C-suite - reveal their proven approach. It's all about using storylines to get to the 'So what' fast, and being able to make a case to back it up.

You can unlock the power of the 'So what' strategy by taking five steps, which are outlined in this book:

1. Understand why mastering storylining is worth the investment.

2. Learn how to use a storyline to identify and harness the 'So what'.

3. Master the seven classic storyline patterns.

4. Use storylines to shape the communication you share.

5. Introduce storylining in your business.

Packed with examples, stories, insights and practical steps, Davina and Gerard show you how to apply these powerful strategies to stop your audiences asking you, 'So what? How does that help us?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780648402565
Publisher:	Clarity First
Publication date:	02/15/2019
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

Davina is Managing Director of Clarity Thought Partners. Davina blends her education and consulting experience to design and deliver innovative and engaging programs for clients. Having begun her working life as a school teacher, she retrained and moved into corporate affairs in a multinational company before joining McKinsey in Hong Kong as a communication specialist. She worked for The Firm in a range of full-time, part-time and freelance capacities over 18 years, helping consultants clarify their thinking so they could communicate clearly with their clients. She now supports the partners and consultants from another top-tier firm, as well as many other clients. Gerard is Co-Founder of Clarity Thought Partners. Gerard blends his straight-talking abilities with a sharp intellect and a great sense of humour to help his clients get to the point quickly. Having also begun his career as a school teacher, Gerard joined McKinsey in Sydney in 1987, where he was one of the most respected communication specialists globally. He branched out on his own seven years later to help clients with their communication and change management projects, where he has won awards for the quality of his work. Gerard is about as connected as you can get in Australian business. He has worked with people at every level of business, consulting and government, and is at times referred to in the press as a 'nameless consultant' helping 'so and so'. McKinsey still calls Gerard to help on discrete client projects.

Gerard is Co-Founder of Clarity Thought Partners. Gerard blends his straight-talking abilities with a sharp intellect and a great sense of humour to help his clients get to the point quickly. Having also begun his career as a school teacher, Gerard joined McKinsey in Sydney in 1987, where he was one of the most respected communication specialists globally. He branched out on his own seven years later to help clients with their communication and change management projects, where he has won awards for the quality of his work. Gerard is about as connected as you can get in Australian business. He has worked with people at every level of business, consulting and government, and is at times referred to in the press as a 'nameless consultant' helping 'so and so'. McKinsey still calls Gerard to help on discrete client projects.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

1 Understanding why mastering storylining is worth the investment 7

Storylining drives clarity of thinking and communication 8

Storylining drives faster and better decision making at all levels of a business 11

Storylining builds a culture of intelligent collaboration around real business issues 17

Storylining builds credibility and trust 20

2 Learning how to use storylines to identify and harness the‘So what’ 23

What to think about before building your storyline 24

How to structure a storyline 28

How to test if your storyline is fit for purpose 44

3 Mastering the seven classic business storyline patterns 47

Grouping storylines

Action Jackson – for action plans 54

The Pitch – for pitches and proposals 59

Traffic Light – for updates 67

Deductive storylines

Close the Gap – for improvement recommendations 74

Houston, We Have a Problem – for explaining how to solve problems 78

To B or Not to B – for explaining which option is best 84

Watch Out – to counter emerging risks 91

4 Using storylines to shape the communication you deliver 97

Packaging your ideas into the most useful medium 99

Delivering your ideas clearly and powerfully 102

Getting feedback 106

5 Introducing storylining in your business 107

Being clear about your purpose and expectations 108

Putting simple support systems and structures in place 108

Allowing time to master the fundamental skills 109

Finding and encouraging role models 110

Planning to make it stick 110

Next steps for you 113

Appendix A: A storyline developed into a Word document 115

Appendix B: A storyline developed into a PowerPoint pack 121

About Davina and Gerard 127

Resources 129

Bibliography 131

Editorial Reviews

'This book is a wonderful guide for anyone who wants to master topdown, message-driven communication, including an elevator pitch. The book practises what it preaches. It is focused on a few key areas - communicating the "So what?", and it provides enough explanation and examples for you to master it, but not so much that you have to wade through repetitive pages.'
- Teresa Woodland, leadership expert and communication coach, Pittsburgh USA

'This could be the best investment that you make this year to improve yourself: my former McKinsey colleagues Davina Stanley and Gerard Castles have just published a guide to helping people get traction behind their ideas. It's about ensuring that you've been understood so that you can engage people to get things done. Highly recommended.'
- Robert Lakin, Co-founder, Analytika Research, Tel Aviv

'I highly recommend The So What Strategy. Davina Stanley and GerardCastles have done a remarkable job putting this book together.'
- Steve Shu, Management Consultant, Los Angeles, California

From the Publisher