Narrative Strategy: Whatever it Takes
I am not a biochemist.
I didn’t study it in school. I don’t have a PhD in it and I definitely don’t have a favorite molecule.*
Yet I’ve spent the last several months consuming everything I can on biochemistry. Reading academic articles, asking AI to explain the basics to me, watching lots of videos on everything from how to use a bunsen burner to newest advances in nanotech…it’s all part of the job as a narrative strategist and my current engagement.
Narrative strategy is really whatever it takes to get the job done.
And by that I mean, research is essential. Understanding the stories of the stakeholders I’m working with is the job. Learning their language, embedding myself into their world, whatever it takes to understand their desires and the obstacles they face — that’s narrative strategy, baby!
A lot of consultants in the strategy space can speak to something similar. They may not be subject matter experts on everything but they know how to do their homework.
For a narrative strategist though, we’re approaching all our work through the framing of story.
Things like: biochemistry, the biochemists I’m engaging with, the developments in the field, the biochemistry research the stakeholders are conducting, the questions they are chasing and the answers that are emerging….
All of it through the lens of storytelling.
And here’s the cool part — because I’m listening, synthesizing, pulling threads together, weaving narratives of meaning and answers to “so what”, I become a bridge between stakeholders — a translator between people, teams, industries. For me, narrative strategy helps connect the dots of seemingly disparate data, seeing opportunities for consensus, unity, and shared meaning. And when those a-ha moments occur, it feels like magic.
You know what, it is magic.
And I’ll do whatever it takes to make that magic happen.
*on second thought, I think caffeine is my favorite molecule.
Also, this song won’t get out of my head and I had to make it the title of this article:
Excellent take! Way to go whimsifying Narrative Strategy! Reading this post definitely felt like taking a sip of a good coffee (yay caffeine!), possibly somewhere sunny :)