Plato was right all along: Those who tell stories do rule the world

The ability to speak in public is perhaps the most powerful force multiplier a leader could deploy

is former CEO of the National Intelligence Grid, distinguished fellow at Observer Research Foundation and author of ‘Everyman’s War’.

Last week, I was at TEDx Gateway, one of the largest talk events of this global movement created by Chris Anderson. While each one of the 20 odd speakers was brilliant, I could sense a deep desire among several in the audience to be on stage. Each of them, like all of us, had their own gripping stories to tell. And so they wished they could—if only they had the courage to get up on stage and take the microphone.

Glossophobia, as the dread of public speaking is known, is one of the most prevalent challenges for leaders. Several studies have shown that public-speaking anxiety is the No. 1 fear for most people, even ahead of death! This prompted Jerry Seinfeld to comically remark that most people at a funeral would rather be the person inside the coffin than the one delivering the eulogy. And like most fears that challenge us, we often choose to seek refuge in the myth that public speaking is an inborn gift.

And here is the irony of it. All of us, regardless of our education, exposure, age or experience, have the inborn gift of public speaking. Observe any kindergarten group and you will see that every child is a born orator. Tragically, this innate skill gets crippled by our social and educational conditioning as we grow older.

Having studied the journey of countless enthralling speakers’ (and also travelling some of that path), I know that the fear of public speaking is essentially traceable to two ancient wirings in our brain.

The first is the fear of standing alone, or of being apart from the crowd. Primordially, isolation meant danger. Even today, ostracization remains a severe societal punishment. The old Arab custom of chopping the right hand of thieves not only created severe disablement, but also ostracized them from communal meals because the left or ‘impure’ hand could not be used for eating from a common plate. This innate fear is further amplified in our education system, where punishments include public humiliation such as being asked to stand on the chair or in a corner. This is also the main reason that many leaders who have participated in scores of panel discussions are loath to be solo on stage.

The second aspect is that it is not public speaking per se that most people are afraid of. Instead, it is the fear of being judged by strangers. For example, you could effortlessly regale your friends with a holiday adventure or an amusing anecdote. But terror could clutch you if you’re asked to narrate the same stories on stage. It is not the speaking that causes fear, but the sense of being judged. There may also be some trepidation that someone in the audience knows your talk’s subject much better and will call you out on it.

Public speaking is an essential skill for leaders for many reasons. Firstly, innumerable studies have shown that the ability to communicate compellingly is essential to lead well. A large part of Apple’s success was Steve Job’s ability to tell a captivating story. Colonizing Mars, say, cannot be inspired by a memo giving out the calculations and thrust vectors of rockets. Secondly, employees like to work for leaders whose energy and passion they can sense and feel. Leadership is a contact sport in that sense. Be it leading a platoon of soldiers into an assault or attempting an ambitious industrial project, troops rally around a human leader, not a stack of PowerPoint slides that explain strategy or an Excel sheet which shows the project’s profitability. But the last reason is perhaps the most important.

Public speaking is not just cognitive skill. Sure, there are structures of storytelling and methods of delivery, etc, that speakers learn and hone. However, public speaking is also a character skill. It requires a leader to not only be knowledgeable, but also demonstrate that she is willing to put herself in a vulnerable spot repeatedly until she has conquered what is arguably one of our biggest fears.

So how does one start? First, we have to realize that, given high enough stakes, everyone has anxiety before they go to stage. Everyone. Speakers who deliver keynote addresses for a living, performers, actors and even politicians are apprehensive of public speaking. The only two categories of people who would not be afraid would be those who don’t care about their audience or those whose primal survival instincts are weak. So you are in great company.

Public speaking is like swimming. You need to start doing it. Begin in a shallow pool. Go back to your school or college and talk about your professional journey. Just narrate what you learnt from other leaders. Your talk doesn’t have to be about your achievements, it could be a narration of someone else’s. Start with low-risk audiences and work your way up.

Lastly, always start with a personal story. For the simple reason that no one can judge you on that. After all, you are the subject expert of you.

Plato’s ancient observation that “those who tell stories rule society” holds true even today. The ability to speak in public is probably the most powerful force multiplier that a leader could add to her character skills.