Why rules are easier to explain – and why our brain actually wants that

It’s Monday morning, 9:30. Jonas stands in front of his team. The PowerPoint slide he hastily put together the previous evening flickers before him: numbers, process flows, a few green and yellow diagrams. He wants to set something straight – a data protection violation that his team committed. Not out of malice, but out of carelessness.

The faces in front of him? Expressionless.
The moment? Cold.
The message? It’s not getting through.

Jonas notices this. And he does something unusual.
He closes his laptop, looks at his colleagues and begins:

“I’ll briefly tell you what this has to do with my first job. Back then, a single data record…”

And suddenly: silence. Heads go up. Everyone is listening.
Why? Because Jonas stopped explaining and started telling a story.

And that brings us right to the topic:
Why does storytelling work in compliance communication – and what does our brain have to do with it?

Stories are the operating system of our thinking

We humans are not made to learn rules. We are made to recognize meaning. And we have been conveying meaning through stories since the beginning of time.

Whether around a campfire, on social media, or in leadership communication – stories have a structure that our brain loves:

• A character we can empathize with
• A problem that needs to be solved
• And an outcome that teaches us something.

So simple – and so effective.

What happens in your head when you hear a story?

When you listen to a story, more happens than you might think. It’s like an inner projector switches on – images appear, emotions are awakened, and memories become interconnected. And this is no coincidence, but can be explained neurobiologically:

The limbic system is firing

This is where our emotional memory resides – and where it’s decided whether something is “important.” Good stories appeal to the amygdala, which is responsible for emotional responses such as fear, empathy, and relief. When Jonas tells us what it was like back then, something is activated within us – even though we didn’t experience it ourselves.

The mirror neurons are activated

These nerve cells allow us to empathize, as if we were ourselves part of the story. We experience internally what the person telling the story feels. This is empathy at a neuronal level – and one of the reasons why we experience stories so intensely.

Neural coupling

Researchers have discovered that when someone tells a story and others listen, their brains synchronize – the same areas become active. This means that communication through storytelling is not only more efficient but also more collaborative. We experience – in the truest sense of the word – the same thing.

Presenting facts – but nobody remembers them? Why stories stick in our minds

You probably remember a moving scene from a movie, or a story that shaped you as a child.
But do you remember the fifth subheading in the last compliance manual?

Probably not.

Why? Because facts often stand in isolation. Stories, on the other hand, connect content with meaning and emotion, and therefore also with long-term memory.
Exciting or emotional stories trigger the release of dopamine – the reward hormone. It makes us more attentive, increases our ability to remember, and “marks” information as relevant.

In short:
What gets under your skin stays in your head.
And that is an invaluable advantage for any form of communication that aims to be effective – especially in compliance.

„The shortest connection between two people is a story.“

Hanns-Josef Ortheil (*November 5, 1951), German writer, screenwriter, Germanist, university professor and pianist

What this means for your work

Imagine you want to draw attention to conflicts of interest within your organization.

You can formulate a new policy.
Or you can say:

“Anna works in purchasing. In addition to her main job, she advises a start-up – and evaluates the same service providers there that she negotiates with at her company. She hasn’t told anyone about this yet…”

A dialogue begins with a scene like this.
You create a space for reflection – and you have everyone’s attention.
Not because you’re lecturing. But because you’re establishing a connection.

And what does the research say?

• Emotional stories activate more areas of the brain than dry facts.
• Oxytocin, the so-called “empathy hormone,” is released in greater quantities when listening to good stories – and increases trust.
• Content is retained for longer and is more likely to be implemented.
• Listeners have been shown to be more helpful, open, and cooperative after hearing emotionally told stories.

These effects are scientifically proven – including through studies by Paul Zak, the NeuroLeadership Institute, and neuroscientific investigations using fMRIs.

How to learn storytelling – without acting training

The good news: You don’t need rhetoric training or a talent for stage monologues.
What you need is a toolbox.

For example:

• A simple structure (e.g., “Hero – Conflict – Turning Point – Solution – Message”)
• Practical templates
• Time for practice and reflection
• And someone who gives you the space to try it out.

Conclusion: Communication, that touches, moves – and lasts

Compliance means responsibility.
But responsibility alone is not enough.
Anyone who really wants to make a difference needs to be heard.

And we won’t gain a hearing with regulations.
But with stories.

Because people follow people – not paragraphs.

So, the next time you stand in front of your team, don’t just ask yourself:
“What do I want to say?”
But also:
“How can I tell it?“

Perhaps it begins with:
“I’ll briefly tell you what this has to do with me…”

© Your Julia Bach

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You might also be interested in the following posts:

Establishing a Compliance Management System

• What exactly is this thing called compliance…?
• Compliance culture: More than just a “must”
• Speak up – What do I do if my gut feeling tells me that something is wrong?
• Unpleasant, but true: Without training, every guideline is worthless

Developing Compliance Officers and Responsibles

• Role Clarity: Caught between two stools? Why role clarity is more than just a feeling
• Clear Language: Clear and understandable instead of convoluted – The Feynman technique in communication
• Unconscious Biases: More Pippi Longstocking in my head

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