Maria walked into the elevator at work.

瑪麗亞走進了上班的電梯。

She went to press the button when her phone fell out of her hand.

她去按按鈕的時候，手機從手裡掉了出來。

It bounced on the floor and --

它在地板上跳動，並 -

went straight down that little opening between the elevator and the floor.

直接從電梯和樓層之間的那個小口子下去了。

And she realized it wasn't just her phone,

她意識到這不僅僅是她的手機。

it was her phone wallet that had her driver's license,

是她的手機錢包裡有她的駕照。

her credit card, her whole life.

她的信用卡，她的一生。

She went to the front desk to talk to Ray, the security guard.

她去前臺跟保全雷說。

Ray was really happy to see her.

雷看到她真的很高興。

Maria is one of the few people

瑪麗亞是少數幾個人之一

that actually stops and says hello to him each day.

其實每天都會停下來和他打招呼的。

In fact, she's one of these people that knows your birthday

其實，她就是那種知道你生日的人。

and your favorite food, and your last vacation,

和你最喜歡的食物，和你最後的假期。

not because she's weird,

不是因為她的怪異。

she just genuinely likes people and likes them to feel seen.

她只是真心喜歡別人，喜歡他們被人看到的感覺。

She tells Ray what happened,

她告訴雷發生了什麼。

and he said it's going to cost at least 500 dollars

他說，這將花費至少500美元

to get her phone back

拿回她的手機

and he goes to get a quote while she goes back to her desk.

他去拿報價，而她則回到自己的辦公桌前。

Twenty minutes later, he calls her and he says, "Maria,

20分鐘後，他給她打電話，他說："瑪麗婭。

I was looking at the inspection certificate in the elevator.

我在電梯裡看檢驗證書。

It's actually due for its annual inspection next month.

其實下個月就該年檢了。

I'm going to go ahead and call that in today

我今天要去打電話了

and we'll be able to get your phone back and it won't cost you anything."

我們就能把你的手機拿回來，而且不會花你任何錢。"

The same day this happened,

這事發生的當天。

I read an article about the CEO of Charles Schwab, Walter Bettinger.

我讀過一篇關於Charles Schwab的CEO Walter Bettinger的文章。

He's describing his straight-A career at university

他在描述他在大學裡的正直的A級生涯。

going in to his last exam expecting to ace it,

在他的最後一次考試中，期望能考個好成績。

when the professor gives one question:

當教授給出一個問題。

"What is the name of the person that cleans this room?"

"打掃這個房間的人叫什麼名字？"

And he failed the exam.

而他卻沒有通過考試。

He had seen her, but he had never met her before.

他見過她，但他從未見過她。

Her name was Dottie and he made a vow that day

她的名字叫Dottie，他當天就發了誓。

to always know the Dotties in his life

要永遠知道Dotties在他的生活中

because both Walter and Maria

因為沃爾特和瑪麗亞都

understand this power of helping people feel seen,

理解這種幫助人們感受被看見的力量。

especially as a leader.

尤其是作為一個領導者。

I used that story back when I worked at General Electric.

我在通用電氣工作的時候就用過這個故事。

I was responsible for shaping culture in a business of 90,000 employees

我負責在一個擁有9萬名員工的企業中塑造企業文化

in 150 countries.

在150個國家。

And I found that stories were such a great way

我發現故事是一種很好的方式。

to connect with people

與人溝通

and have them think,

並讓他們思考。

"What would I do in this situation?

"在這種情況下，我會怎麼做？

Would I have known Dottie

我會認識Dottie嗎？

or who are the Dotties I need to know in my life?"

或者說誰是我生命中需要了解的點點滴滴？"

I found that no matter people's gender or their generation

我發現，無論男女老少，不管是什麼年代的人

or their geography in the world,

或其在世界的地理。

the stories resonated and worked.

的故事產生了共鳴和作用。

But in my work with leaders,

但在我與上司的工作中。

I've also found they tend to be allergic to telling stories.

我還發現他們往往對講故事過敏。

They're not sure where to find them,

他們不知道在哪裡可以找到他們。

or they're not sure how to tell them,

或者說他們不知道如何告訴他們。

or they think they have to present data

或者他們認為他們必須提交數據

and that there's just not room to tell a story.

而這只是沒有空間來講述一個故事。

And that's where I want to focus today.

而這也是我今天想關注的地方。

Because storytelling and data is actually not this either-or.

因為講故事和數據其實不是這種非此即彼的關係。

It's an "and," they actually create this power ballad

這是一個 "和"，他們實際上創造了這個權力的民謠。

that connects you to information differently.

能將你與資訊連接起來的不同。

To understand how,

要了解如何。

we have to first understand what happens neurologically

我們必須先了解神經學上發生了什麼。

when you're listening to a story and data.

當你在聽一個故事和數據的時候。

So as you're in a lecture or you're in a meeting,

所以當你在講課或者開會的時候。

two small parts of your brain are activated,

你大腦的兩個小部分被激活。

Wernicke and Broca's area.

Wernicke和Broca的區域。

This is where you're processing information,

這是你處理資訊的地方。

and it's also why you tend to forget 50 percent of it

這也是為什麼你往往會忘記50%的東西的原因

right after you hear it.

你聽完後，就會發現。

When you listen to a story,

當你聽一個故事。

your entire brain starts to light up.

你的整個大腦開始亮起來。

Each of your lobes will light up

你的每個葉子都會亮起來

as your senses and your emotions are engaged.

當你的感官和情緒參與時。

As I talk about a phone falling and hitting the ground with a thud

當我說到手機掉下來，砰的一聲砸在地上的時候

your occipital and your temporal lobes are lighting up

你的枕葉和你的顳葉都亮了起來。

as though you are actually seeing that falling phone

彷彿你真的看到了那個掉落的手機

and hearing it hit with a thud.

並聽到它砰的一聲撞上。

There's this term, neural coupling,

有這樣一個詞，神經耦合。

which says, as the listener,

其中說，作為聽眾。

your brain will light up exactly as mine

你的腦子會和我的一樣亮

as the storyteller.

作為講故事的人。

It mirrors this activity

它反映了這項活動

as though you are actually experiencing these things.

彷彿你真的在經歷這些事情。

Storytelling gives you this artificial reality.

講故事給了你這個人造的現實。

If I talked to you about, like, walking through the snow

如果我跟你說起，比如，在雪地裡走來走去

and with each step,

並隨著每一步。

the snow is crunching under my shoes,

雪在我的鞋下嘎吱作響。

and big, wet flakes are falling on my cheeks,

我的臉頰上落滿了溼漉漉的大雪花。

your brains are now lighting up

你們的大腦現在已經亮了

as though you are walking through the snow and experiencing these things.

彷彿自己正走在雪地裡，經歷著這些事情。

It's why you can sit in an action movie

這就是為什麼你可以坐在動作片裡的原因

and not be moving,

而不動聲色。

but your heart is racing as though you're the star on-screen

但你的心跳加速，彷彿你是螢幕上的明星。

because this neural coupling has your brain lighting up

因為這種神經耦合讓你的大腦亮了起來。

as though you are having that activity.

彷彿你正在進行這種活動。

As you listen to stories,

當你聽故事的時候。

you automatically gain empathy for the storyteller.

你會自動對講故事的人產生共鳴。

The more empathy you experience,

你體驗到的同理心越多。

the more oxytocin is released in your brain.

大腦中釋放的催產素越多。

Oxytocin is the feel-good chemical

催產素是一種讓人感覺良好的化學物質

and the more oxytocin you have,

和更多的催產素你有。

the more trustworthy you actually view the speaker.

你對演講者的實際看法就越值得信賴。

This is why storytelling is such a critical skill for a leader

這就是為什麼講故事是領導者的關鍵技能。

because the very act of telling a story

因為講故事的行為本身

makes people trust you more.

讓人們更加信任你。

As you begin to listen to data, some different things happen.

當你開始傾聽數據時，一些不同的事情就會發生。

There are some misconceptions to understand.

有一些誤區需要了解。

And the first is that data doesn't change our behavior,

而第一個是數據並不能改變我們的行為。

emotions do.

情緒做。

If data changed our behavior,

如果數據改變了我們的行為。

we would all sleep eight hours and exercise and floss daily

我們都會睡八小時，每天運動，用牙線。

and drink eight glasses of water.

並喝八杯水。

But that's not how we actually decide.

但這不是我們真正的決定方式。

Neuroscientists have studied decision-making,

神經科學家對決策進行了研究。

and it starts in our amygdala.

它開始在我們的杏仁核。

This is our emotional epicenter

這裡是我們的情感中心

where we have the ability to experience emotions

我們有能力體驗情感

and it's here at a subconscious level where we begin to decide.

而在這裡，在潛意識層面，我們開始決定。

We make choices to pursue pleasure

我們為了追求快樂而做出選擇

or to avoid risk,

或避免風險。

all before we become aware of it.

都在我們意識到之前。

At the point we become aware,

在我們意識到的時候。

where it comes to the conscious level,

凡是到了意識層面。

we start to apply rationalization and logic,

我們開始運用合理化和邏輯。

which is why we think we're making these rationally-based decisions,

這就是為什麼我們認為我們在做這些理性的決定。

not realizing that they were already decided in our subconscious.

卻不知道它們已經在我們的潛意識中決定了。

Antonio Damasio is a neuroscientist

安東尼奧-達馬西奧是一位神經科學家。

that started to study patients that had damage to their amygdala.

開始研究杏仁核受損的患者。

Fully functioning in every way,

各方面功能齊全。

except they could not experience emotions.

除了他們無法體驗情感。

And as a result, they could not make decisions.

是以，他們無法做出決定。

Something as simple as "do I go this way or this way"

就像 "我是走這邊還是這邊 "這樣簡單的事情。

they were incapable of doing,

他們無法做到的。

because they could not experience emotions.

因為他們無法體驗情感。

These were people that were wildly successful

這些人都是非常成功的人

before they had the damage to their amygdala

在他們的杏仁核受到傷害之前

and now they couldn't complete any of their projects

而現在他們卻無法完成任何項目。

and their careers took big hits,

而他們的事業也受到了很大的衝擊。

all because they couldn't experience emotions where we decide.

都是因為他們不能在我們決定的地方體驗情感。

Another data misconception.

又是一個數據誤區。

Data never speaks for itself.

數據從來不會自己說話。

Our brains love to anticipate

我們的大腦喜歡預測

and as we anticipate,

和我們預期的一樣。

we fill in the gaps on what we're seeing or hearing

拾遺補缺

with our own knowledge and experience

以我們自己的知識和經驗

and our own bias.

和我們自己的偏見。

Which means my understanding of data is going to differ from yours,

也就是說，我對數據的理解會和你的理解有所不同。

and it's going to differ from yours,

而且會和你的不同。

because we're all going to have our own interpretation

因為我們都會有自己的解釋。

if there isn't a way to guide us through.

如果沒有辦法引導我們通過。

Now I'm not suggesting that data is bad and story is good.

現在我不是說數據不好，故事好。

They both play a key role.

他們都起到了關鍵作用。

And to understand how,

而要了解如何。

you have to see what makes a great story.

你必須看到是什麼讓一個偉大的故事。

It's going to answer three questions.

它要回答三個問題。

The first is:

第一個是：

What is the context?

背景是什麼？

Meaning, what's the setting, who is involved,

意思是說，什麼環境，誰參與了。

why should I even care?

我為什麼要關心？

What is the conflict,

矛盾是什麼。

where is that moment where everything changes?

哪裡是那一刻，一切都變了？

And what is the outcome?

結果是什麼呢？

Where is it different, what is the takeaway?

哪裡不一樣，有什麼啟示？

A good story also has three attributes,

一個好的故事也有三個屬性。

the first being it is going to build and release tension.

首先是它要建立和釋放張力。

So because our brains love to anticipate,

所以，因為我們的大腦喜歡預測。

a great story builds tension by making you wonder:

一個偉大的故事通過讓你好奇來建立張力。

"Where is she going with this?"

"她這是要去哪裡？"

"What's happening next," right?

"接下來會發生什麼"，對嗎？

A good story keeps you, keeps your attention going.

一個好的故事能讓你，讓你的注意力持續下去。

And it releases it by sharing something unexpected

而它通過分享一些意想不到的東西來釋放它

and it does this over and over throughout the story.

而且它在整個故事中不斷地這樣做。

A great story also builds an idea.

一個好的故事也是建立一個理念。

It helps you see something that you can no longer unsee,

它能幫助你看到一些你無法再看清的東西。

leaving you changed,

讓你改變。

because stories actually do leave you changed.

因為故事其實是會讓你改變的。

And a great story communicates value.

而一個好的故事能傳遞價值。

Stanford has done research on one of the best ways

斯坦福大學曾做過研究，其中一個最好的方法是

to shape organizational culture,

以塑造組織文化。

and it is storytelling,

而且是講故事。

because it's going to demonstrate what you value and encourage

因為它將展示你的價值和鼓勵。

or what you don't value and what you discourage.

或你不重視什麼，不鼓勵什麼。

As you start to write your power ballad,

當你開始寫你的力量民謠。

most people want to start with the data.

大多數人都想從數據入手。

They want to dig in,

他們想挖掘。

because we often have piles of data.

因為我們經常有一堆數據。

But there's a common mistake we make when we do that.

但是我們在做這件事的時候，有一個常見的錯誤。

I was working with a CEO.

我和一個CEO一起工作。

She came to me to prepare for her annual company-wide meeting

她來找我，是為了準備她的年度全公司會議

and she had 45 slides of data

她有45張幻燈片的數據

for a 45-minute presentation.

45分鐘的演講。

A recipe for a boring, unmemorable talk.

枯燥無味的談話的祕訣。

And this is what most people do,

而這也是大多數人的做法。

they come armed with all of this data

他們帶著所有這些數據

and they try to sort their way through

他們試圖通過梳理他們的方式

without a big picture

縱觀全局

and then they lose their way.

然後他們就失去了方向。

We actually put the data aside and I asked her,

其實我們把數據放在一邊，我問她。

"What's the problem you're trying to solve?

"你要解決的問題是什麼？

What do you want people to think and feel different

你希望人們有什麼不同的想法和感受？

and what do you want people to do different at the end of this?"

以及你希望人們在最後做什麼不同的事情？"

That is where you start with data and storytelling.

這就是你從數據和故事開始的地方。

You come up with this framework to guide the way through

你想出這個框架來指導我們的工作。

both the story and the data.

故事和數據。

In her case,

在她的情況下。

she wants her company to be able to break into new markets,

她希望自己的公司能夠打入新的市場。

to remain competitive.

以保持競爭力。

She ended up telling a story about her daughter,

最後她講了一個關於女兒的故事。

who's a gymnast who's competing for a scholarship,

誰是體操運動員誰的競爭獎學金。

and she had to learn new routines with increasing difficulty

她必須學習新的程序，難度越來越大。

to be competitive.

才能具有競爭力。

This is one of your choices.

這是你的選擇之一。

Do you tell a story about the data itself

你是否講述了一個關於數據本身的故事

or do you tell a parallel story,

還是講一個平行的故事。

where you pull out points from the story to reinforce the data?

你從故事中抽出要點來強化數據？

As you begin this ballad,

當你開始這首民謠時

this melody and harmony of data and storytelling come together

這種數據和故事的旋律和和諧結合在一起。

in a way that will stay with you long after.

以一種讓你久久難忘的方式。

Briana was a college adviser.

Briana是大學顧問。

And she was asked to present to her university leadership

並要求她向校領導彙報。

when she realized that a large population of their students with autism

當她意識到他們的學生中有很大一部分人患有自閉症時。

were not graduating.

沒有畢業。

She came to me because her leaders kept saying,

她來找我是因為她的上司一直在說。

"Present the data, focus on the data,"

"呈現數據，關注數據"。

but she felt like university officials already had the data.

但她覺得大學官員已經掌握了這些數據。

She was trying to figure out how to help them connect with it.

她在想辦法幫助他們與之聯繫。

So we worked together to help her tell the story about Michelle.

所以我們一起幫她講述了關於米歇爾的故事。

Michelle was a straight-A student in high school

米歇爾在高中時是個全優生

who had these dreams of going to university.

誰有這些上大學的夢想。

Michelle was also a student with autism

米歇爾也是一名自閉症學生

who was terrified about how she would be able to navigate

她很害怕自己如何能駕馭得了。

the changes of university.

大學的變化。

Her worst fears came true on her first phone call

她最擔心的事情在她的第一個電話中就實現了

with her adviser,

與她的顧問。

when he asked her questions like,

當他問她這樣的問題時，

"Where do you see yourself in five years?"