BackA book review by Farzana Baduel
We are living in uncharted waters. Social media has opened a gateway to self-storytelling. We are no longer the passive audience consuming stories about society’s heroes and villains. We are the story. We are the Luke Skywalkers. We are the hero on our own journey. This is our life, and we can share our story with the world with the touch of a button. We are all storytellers now.
Mike’s book is timely. Personal branding has become a thing. People have realised what politicians knew across the ages, perceptions inform reality. We have the tools to curate perceptions about ourselves online and influence the way the world views us. This has of course given rise to the need for authenticity as with photoshopping tools and filters, we can journey into distorting reality and disconnect from our true selves.
Mike is a former journalist. He worked as a BBC correspondent covering business, politics and the Middle East for a number of years. I am always interested to know about journalists and their journey from journalism crossing over the threshold to public relations. After leaving journalism, he worked in a leading corporate communications firm before launching his own consulting firm.
Mike champions honest and truthful business communication and works with CEOs on their leadership storytelling. Instead of applying his media background to tactical media relations, he has specialised in the art of strategic storytelling for the self.
PR for Humans is a book of two halves. The first half is a guide to finding your story. This part is often overlooked as the desire for action results in misguided tactical implementation of a non-existent strategy leading to a waste of time for all involved.
Finding your story is a strategic discipline which requires an understanding of content, introspection and the principles of storytelling.
Mike takes us on a journey across the story landscape pointing out the need for belief, one must believe in something and have an opinion in order to connect with the public. He espouses the power of clarity by stripping out the jargon and energising delivery. Like a good PR professional, he advocates horizon scanning where you get off your island and understand the context and landscape around you. He brings his broadcast background to deliver masterclasses in the use of imagery and connecting stories across past, present and future time constructs. My favourite principle in the book is humility, he has wise words for students of life with classic maxims of being humble and listen. In a world of noise, to be a good listener is rare.
The second part of the book is dedicated to telling your story. Mike shares his techniques across speechwriting, media and content. He is a firm believer in the power of story. Story has value. We can influence reputation through storytelling. As AI advances, human storytelling becomes more and more important. His book is an ode to storytelling. A must read for all those seeking change through effective leadership. After all, stories can change the world.
PR for Humans will be out on 4th April 2019 and can be ordered on Amazon
PR for Humans podcast | Mike Sergeant in conversation with me discussing storytelling and international PR
