Why there's more to being a storyteller than just calling yourself one

I’ve been describing myself as a storyteller for more than 40 years.

From my first job in journalism as a 16-year-old boy writing about motorcycling for a national publication (it’s a long story which I promise to tell sometime) to my current work as a strategic communications specialist, stories have been my bread and butter.

Take in a lengthy stint running the news operation at one of the country’s biggest regional papers, a brilliant period training journalists and a bit of time at a PR agency and I reckon I’ve earned my stripes when it comes to the storytelling craft.

So it’s a little frustrating to see anyone who ever picked up a pen – and in some cases some who didn’t – now describing themselves as a storyteller.

The word has become the latest bit of corporate jargon being tossed around by all and sundry.

For example, in the last month I’ve seen adverts for a food brand storyteller and a senior director overseeing storytelling. Just yesterday the new director-general of the BBC referenced storytelling in his first public comments on his appointment.

Being a storyteller isn’t a job title you sprinkle into a LinkedIn bio because it sounds warm and human. It’s not a corporate buzzword to bolt onto a brand deck and it’s certainly not something you become the moment you write your first paragraph.

A real storyteller – in PR and comms at least – is someone who takes the time to understand their client.  Someone who listens for the things they don’t say as much as the things they do. Someone who joins the dots and sees the shape of a brand.

And when they’ve done that, they turn all that raw material into editorial content that actually means something and brings a business to life.

That’s why, after all these years, I’m still proud to call myself a storyteller, even if the word is getting thrown around a little too freely these days.