Story spotting is the skill communicators need most

In a world where attention is the new currency, getting your message heard isn’t as simple as hitting ‘send’. No matter who you're communicating with: employees, customers, or anyone in between, you’ll always be competing with endless noise. Between notifications, updates, pings, priorities, and pressure, it’s no wonder so many great ideas struggle to land.

So while we often hear that storytelling helps cut through and garner attention, there’s actually a fairly critical step that we often miss: before you can tell a great story, you have to spot one.

The ability to recognise where something could prove something meaningful is the best tool for your toolkit because it’s the material for connection. So, how do we spot a story opportunity?

Finding a story 

Story-spotting isn’t just about finding tales to tell in meetings or town halls. Stories show up in multiple ways:

1. The stories you tell

These are the ones leaders and communicators know best: the crafted narratives designed to unite people, clarify purpose, or explain change.

2. The stories you listen for

When you draw out someone else’s experiences, you build trust fast. You also uncover what truly matters to them.

3. The stories you trigger

How you show up in your behaviour, tone, timing, creates an instant narrative in people’s minds. Leaders often forget this, but it’s powerful.

4. The story you tell yourself

The internal monologue that shapes confidence, clarity, and your willingness to step forward. This one is often the biggest barrier to effective communication.

Why the DNA Framework works

One of the most practical approaches to communication, especially during change, is the DNA (Dream–Nightmare–Action) sequence created by David Pullan and Sarah Jane McKechnie. It works because it matches the way humans naturally process the world.

We’re always holding three things:

• A dream: what we want, where we're heading, what we hope for

• A nightmare: the fear, obstacle, or risk that might get in the way

• An action: what we can do to move forward despite that obstacle

Every project, every team, every change conversation lives inside this structure. When communicators speak to the dream first, acknowledge the nightmare second, and offer actions last, people feel seen, heard, and genuinely engaged. Skip straight to the action and you invite resistance; start with the nightmare and you trigger anxiety. Lead with the dream and you unlock alignment.

A simple story structure you can use

Storytelling can intimidate leaders, especially new ones. Many are promoted for their technical strengths, not for their ability to communicate vision or vulnerability. The good news? A story doesn’t have to be a performance. It just needs structure.

One of the easiest frameworks to use is PRET, also created by David Pullan and Sarah Jane McKechnie:

• P – Point: What’s the one thing you need them to know?

• R – Reason: Why does it matter to them?

• E – Example: A short story or scene that brings the message to life

• T – Takeaway: What should they do or remember next?

This approach gives leaders something they’ve often never had: a formula that makes communication clear, human, and digestible.

Why vulnerability matters

People connect with struggle far more than perfection. Leaders who never share the stumbles, doubts, or challenges that shaped them feel unrelatable… and unreachable. The key is sharing experiences from the scar, not the wound. How did you get here? What did you learn? What nearly stopped you? These aren’t weaknesses because they show others what’s possible.

You can still use email!

Despite countless new channels, email remains the corporate workhorse. It’s where projects live, where decisions gather, where most people still expect to receive the ‘official version’ of things. But inboxes are overflowing, and if you don’t craft messages with intention, they drown.

Unignorable email provides clarity, relevance, and humanity which is exactly why story-spotting plays a role here too: people read what feels like it’s for them, not at them. The challenge isn’t actually that email is outdated, but rather that most emails are forgettable.

If you can spot a story, you can tell a story. If you can tell a story, you can influence change.
And if you can influence change, you can cut through any amount of noise.