What can psychopaths teach us about storytelling?

What's the story? #7– why storytelling will always be the key to building great brands.

Psychopaths have a reputation for being cold, calculating and manipulative. But they can also be charming, charismatic and extraordinarily persuasive – often master storytellers – to get people to do what they want.

Such personality traits don’t always get them into trouble, but can get them a long way – in the boardroom and the bedroom.

In his book The Wisdom of Psychopaths, psychologist Kevin Dutton explores why.

It’s often thought that psychopaths lack empathy, but that’s not strictly true. Many are remarkably good at understanding how other people feel. They just don’t share those feelings. 

They know which emotional buttons to push. And when. How to win trust. How to make people believe. And act.

Dutton tells a story about a seasoned police officer, with certain psychopathic personality traits. But not enough to put him on the wrong side of the law.

As a custody seargeant, every Friday night one particular character would be brought in drunk. And when he was, he would start acting ‘crazy’ so the sergeant had to call in the duty psychiatrist to assess him.

Every time the psychiatrist turned up, the man would behave perfectly normally. So, the next morning they'd have to let him go, knowing sure as sh*t that it would be the same story next week.

It was time to get creative. To tell a different one.

When the man was thrown in the cell again the following Friday, the sergeant went off to the lost property room. He emerged a few moments later dressed as a clown: red nose, wig, face paint, shoes… the works.

He flopped back to the cell with a pen and notepad, and asked the astonished prisoner what he would like for breakfast. Croissant? Freshly squeezed orange juice? And how would you like your eggs?

After taking the order, he came back a while later, now in his uniform again – with the duty psychiatrist.

The prisoner immediately started telling the psychiatrist the clown story. How it was the police sergeant who was crazy, not him.

The psychiatrist turned to the sergeant for confirmation, who just shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“Right,” said the psychiatrist, rolling up his sleeves, “looks like we’re in business.”

Great storytelling isn't just about telling people something. Its about making them feel something, and for brands, nudging them to act on those feelings.

The best storytellers understand their audiences' hopes, fears, desires and motivations. They know how to capture attention, create emotional connections and change perceptions. Sometimes behaviour too.

There's a big difference between persuasion and manipulation. One can build trust. The other exploits it.

Either way, the secret to a powerful story isn't simply knowing what you want to say. It's understanding what your audience wants to feel. Even if it sounds crazy.