I’m up in the mountains in the town of Breckenridge. It is bustling on a Friday night, full of tourists bundled up, some practically and some completely outfitted for apres ski. Cars creep through downtown in search of a place to land and expel occupants onto the snowy sidewalks, while pedestrians meander along, window shopping, huddling around cafe heaters, and swapping slope stories. Like a good fishing story, they grow as the night moves along – jumps get higher, falls more epic, speed cranks up notch by notch.

Our inherent desire to to share experiences by telling stories starts young and we do it naturally in our lives. And yet, we often don’t value this more in our professional / business environment – prefering instead to “get to the point”, or keep communication strictly “factual” and to not “waste time”. I remember very little of the tactical communication I get, but I rarely forget a good story. So in the end, which is more useful, efficient, and productive?