Every communication - spoken or written has two ingredients.

Content + Context = Communication

The right mix of these two ingredients creates a compelling and memorable message which produces excellent results. The wrong mix produces inferior, or worse yet, no results. This is true for individuals as well as organizations.

	Content ... Facts
	We want to believe facts will lead us to the right decision, tell us what to do or say, and lead others to rally to our causes. The reality is quite different. Facts alone rarely inspire, connect, or motivate. It turns out, context is every bit as important as content.

	Context ... Story
	Context is the story that helps us make sense of the facts. The story connects the facts to feelings. How people feel about the facts will determine what they think and do.

	Storytelling
	Everyone recognizes, "It was a dark and stormy night and a shot rang out ..." as the beginning of a story. Many don't understand that, "Let me tell you what happened to me yesterday ..." is also the beginning of a story.

Stories are how we make sense of our lives and how we connect with others. Stories are not limited to what can be found in books. Experiences, metaphors, and analogies we share every day are also stories.