WorkLore

Good stories capture us and enthrall us. 

When we are caught up in a good story, whether someone is telling it to us, or we’re reading a good book, or we’re watching it on the screen, something interesting starts to happen. 

Our brains start to sync. 

Paul Zak used fMRI to demonstrate that stories can cause our brains to sync up, especially when those stories have an emotional component that triggers empathy. 

That syncing up actually changes our brain chemistry as well, triggering the release of oxytocin, a neurotransmitter that connects us to others. (It’s the one that helps mothers and infants bond with each other.)

What’s interesting is that our brains don’t sync up like this when we are just provided with information. Those empathy centers aren’t triggered, and we retain our critical, rational analysis of the information. 

In story, we suspend that critical part of our brain and tap into a more fundamental part. One that connects us to others. One that grew out of our social nature. 

Story is integral to what it means to be human because it connects us. 

Good stories do that – they connect us – and some people naturally gravitate toward the ways of telling stories that do so, but we all are capable of it with a little practice. 

I’ll share more about what you can do to tell better stories periodically over the upcoming months.