Putin is just a bad storyteller
.. and Zelenskyy may be among the best!
As I write this, Russia is at war with Ukraine, and the whole world (except for a handful of countries) seems to be empathizing with and supporting Ukraine and its people. Nothing wrong with that.
I too am rooting for the blue and yellow. It makes for a perfect David vs Goliath story and by nature, we as humans always tend to support and root for the little guy. Whatever the results of the fight, Putin has already lost. The narrative is against him. He is losing friends by the hour and if twitter trends are to be believed, the world wants to see him punished for these war crimes against a peaceful nation and its people.
The courage shown by the Ukrainians against overwhelming odds is not just commendable but is also drawing comparisons with our own politicians. What if they were in a similar scenario, would they be ready to put their lives on the line? If they will fight with the same valor as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy? Will they be able to rally a nation behind them and motivate the citizens to fight?
These are just some of the questions we are asking ourselves and in our hearts know the answer to most of them. How? Our perception of our leaders paints a picture in our minds.
Today, a leader who is not a great storyteller is already at a huge disadvantage.
President Zelenskyy of Ukraine, a former actor, and a comedian has harnessed this art of storytelling to propel himself to what we may call a ‘hero’ status. On the scale of Antman (a petty thief who got lucky) to Thor (A God worthy to wield the power of Mjolnir), President Zelenskyy is Captain America or Captain Ukraine if you may.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin has been painted into an ultimate villain with his high-headed demeanor and conquer-all dictatorship-driven attitude.
If you look at it, his problem is more to do with storytelling, than his actions. No, I am not saying that his actions are any less condemnable, I however believe that other leaders in history have done worse without a finger being pointed at them. The US invasion of Iraq comes to mind as its forces went searching for non-existent weapons of mass destruction. This was again a large superpower invading a much smaller nation with limited military resources. The narrative however was shaped against the Iraq dictator, Saddam Hussain — A tyrant. No doubt he was a bad person with numerous crimes to his name but the story weaved around it, made him look like the worst person on earth, and to an extent justified the US’ attacks without many repercussions.
Stories matter, and ignoring this arguably is the biggest mistake Putin made.
In a connected world, the art of storytelling can define your legacy more than your action. For him, it was all about the legacy he wanted to leave behind. A leader under whom, the USSR became whole again, and if we are to believe the political pundits, Ukraine was supposed to be just the first and the easiest step to this.
Let’s look at the Putin and Zelenskyy story from a storytelling lens and find out how they performed.
1. Know your audience and make them care: This is the first and by far the most important point. It doesn’t just mean gaining knowledge of the people you are speaking to. It also means to know how will they feel and react to a story. What will make them empathize and what will annoy them? What is the current scenario like, is the timing good?
Putin didn’t care much. The world was just recovering from a global pandemic, and the war was the last thing people needed. The only argument that may be made is that he waited for the winter Olympics being hosted in China to end before he could start his onslaught.
In contrast, Zelenskyy warmed up his audience by taking the entire world on a guilt trip for not being able to help (and rightly so) and then through a showcase of sheer courage, getting the whole world to come along and feel for him and his country.
2. Research and make it believable: Any story that doesn’t have a solid context based on facts or notions people believe in is bound to fail. The least Putin could have done is his research on the government’s leader against whom he was hoping to create a narrative. He compared the Ukrainian Government to the Nazis. Only if he would have taken the time to go through his enemy’s history, he would have found that the president himself is a Jew and belongs to a family who had fought against Hitler. Obviously, this didn't sit well with the global audience.
His argument of not letting the supposed enemy settle near Russia’s shores also didn’t hold much ground in a world that is becoming smaller and more reachable every single day. His old-school thought process is not aligned with the new-age thinking.
3. Keep your audience engaged: The best way to keep anyone engaged is by sharing information and communicating regularly. There can be no engagement without communication.
Putin appeared on Russian national TV to announce that he was going to conduct a ‘Special Military Operation’ against Ukraine and then there was white noise for a long period of time even when the world criticized him.
On the other hand, president Zelenskyy continued to communicate with people, over the phone, and through social media, engaging with them sharing his story as it developed. Right from the disappointment in not getting direct on-ground help to the now-famous quote: “I don’t need a ride, I need ammunition”. He continued to get more people aligned to his cause and slowly, protests could be seen across the world in his and his country’s support, including Russia — a country whose armed forces are currently invading Russia, and a country where protesting against the supreme leader is a sure short ticket to long-term jail time.
4. Build up to a big finish: Every great story has to have a great ending. While Putin has already lost most people who may have been rooting for him (Maybe a certain someone whose name rhymes with Ronald Mump is still in awe of him), he could still end this like a bigger person by acknowledging the great fight put up by the Ukraine forces and coming to a mutually agreeable treaty. That is, however, the best-case scenario for him.
In contrast, President Zelenskyy has had the crowd roaring and praying for his success. A lot of people are posting on Twitter that the first thing they do after waking up is to check if he is still alive and at the helm of his army. While the war is still on, and as we speak, Russia and Ukraine may meet for negotiations in Belarus, one thing that is true is that the ending of Zelenskyy’s story is going to be great. Either as a hero who brought down a great superpower to its knees or as a Martyr (God forbid) who will be remembered for generations.
To sum it up, in the words of Vera Nazarian, a Russian American writer, “The world is shaped by two things — stories told and the memories they leave behind.”
