The ______ Little Pigs.
The ______ Bears.
Catch-____.
Stories don’t amount to much without the numbers.
We all know the power of story-telling in philanthropy. Stories can move our grantees to action, compel our colleagues to support important work, engage our policymakers, and convince our neighbors to help us build a movement for social change. But what of stories without stats? Without data to enrich the tales we tell about our work, how can we be sure we’re even telling the right story?
When Michael Mauboussin, investment strategist and author of Think Twice: Harnessing the Power of Counterintuition, took the stage at the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s (CEP) Better Philanthropy: From Data to Impact conference I was pretty sure I knew his story. I skimmed his credentials—Chief Investment Strategist at Legg Mason Capital Management—and knew I would be treated to yet another spiel about what philanthropy can learn from business. I settled in to finish my dessert and listen politely. But I was soon drawn in when Mauboussin turned, instead, to challenge the audience: we know we can suck in stakeholders through moving anecdotes. How do you suck them in using analysis? How do you compel them with data about the problems you’re trying to solve, the failures you’ve had, and the impact you’ve made?
Humans are compelled by anecdotes. And from sweating polar bears to sad-eyed kids, philanthropy has been very good at introducing its partners and the public to moving images and anecdotes. I kid, but maybe we’ve gotten too good, too complacent in simply sharing what moves us and what we know will move others. And, as Mauboussin challenges us, a really good, emotional story can sometimes distract us from acting on good data.
But let’s not throw out our playbook just yet. Why aren’t we equipping our best storytellers with the data that we are working so hard to gather and synthesize? Why don’t we give them the proof of our failed and successful experiments? The data that lets our stakeholders know that there’s a method to our madness? As much as humans are compelled by an emotional story, that engagement may yield only momentary commitment (and maybe a tear or two). Data equips your stakeholders with tools that enable them to become your envoys for the long-haul. And if that data is couched in the form of a digestible, accessible story told by a beneficiary, it’s all the better.
The true test of any good suggestion in philanthropy seems to be, “Do those practitioners who don’t have to do it do it anyway?” CEP Data to Impact participants bore witness to the test of data-rich stories when Debi Brooks, Co-Founder of The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, joined the actor-turned-philanthropist on stage. As Brooks said, “We don’t simply smile and wish for the best. We come with data.” If ever there were a foundation that could ride the tide of a compelling personality, it’s the Michael J. Fox Foundation. Yet they choose to tell their story—to frame the invaluable currency they have in a beloved actor—by sharing the science.
Let me put a fine point on it: they have Alex P. Keaton as their founder. Yet instead of letting him simply appear and compel scientists to—and I quote—“fix the shaky guy,” the Michael J. Fox Foundation chooses to train and arm their best asset with rich data. Fox becomes more than a compelling personality: he becomes a compelling personality with a well-informed, actionable story to tell.
Emotional anecdotes are calls to react…not calls to action. Train your poster children. Arm your best ambassadors with your best data and let your story of impact unfold.
Molly Martin is operations and learning officer for the Lumina Foundation for Education
