HOW TO TELL A
SPINE-TINGLING
STORY
So you can make connections,
amplify your message and close sales
(not to mention win story slams and wow your friends)
JW@JOHANNAWALKER.COM
JOHANNA WALKER WWW.JOHANNAWALKER.COM
Hello story lover! Glad you're here!
You already know that a story is the shortest distance between two people. You know that if
you want to inspire someone to say YES to your idea, close a deal, make a sale, you have to
first connect to that person -- human to human, heart to heart.
Whether you're sharing an idea with a colleague, getting buy-in from the team you lead,
sharing your wisdom with a potential, or even just getting your kid to eat broccoli, telling a
story is the most effective way to make that connection.
Over the years, I’ve learned a lot about what makes a story great. I’ve listened, I’ve watched,
I’ve told stories myself — and have figured out one or two things about what makes a story
spine-tingling.
It’s not (necessarily) about some big major traumatic event in your life.
It’s not a string of events leading to a "The End."
It’s not about spectacle or fanfare.
So what IS it about, Johanna?
It's about you showing up as you, with authenticity & heart, and taking your audience on a
journey to discovery and delight. I’m gonna lay out some of the secrets for you right here.
Take a look, then shoot me an email at concierge@johannawalker.com and tell me what your
biggest take-away was.
Either that, or tell me a story. I can't wait to hear it!
ONE: A story is about people with problems. No problem = No story. Nobody really
wants to hear the story about that beautiful day with your love when the skies were sunny
and you basked in your own awesomeness, ate bonbons and everything was beautiful. But
the bear who came along and interrupted your picnic? Tell us about that! Or how you lost
your car keys and had to hitchhike home in the rain? Yes, please. Tell us that.
TWO: Yes, stories are about people with problems, but we also want to hear how you
overcame that problem. We’re not that interested in victim stories. So if you hitchhike
home in the rain, feel bad about yourself and decide that the world is out to get you
….bzzzzt. Nope. But tell us about the epiphany you had on the way home, and how the rain
reminded you that you’re human, and you decided to quit your job and write a novel
instead. Then cool, your journey home in the rain will be a gift to us.
THREE: But that doesn’t mean everything has to be neatly tied up in a bow at the
end. In fact if you tie things up too neatly, we might roll our eyes. We want to hear the
questions you’re left with, (what would happen if we threw all plans to the wind?) the
humor that shines a light on your imperfection, (wet socks, anyone?) and the unexpected
surprise that keeps us leaning forward on the edge of our seats. (turns out your boss was
just about to fire you anyway)
FOUR: Speaking of imperfections, make sure to show us yours. If you go on and
on about how amazing you are, it’ll be hard for us muggles to relate. We might shut
down, tune out and check our phones while you pat yourself on your back and gaze in
the proverbial mirror.
But if you show the cracks in your amazingness, the places where your imperfection
leaks out, we’ll say “Oh! She’s just like me! He really gets it! It’s as if he’s telling my story!”
That’s what you’re after. That’s when connection happens. So be willing to show the
quirks you might normally hide. (In other words, don’t pretend this is the first time you
went for a picnic when chances of rain were 90%.)
FIVE: A story happens in space and time. Not in your head. Not in the idea of a
thing. It’s not a rant or a philosophical essay or a description of how you sat alone in a
room and contemplated something.
We don’t really want to hear about the life-changing epiphany you had without telling us
exactly where you were sitting when it happened, what time it was, what happened
before and what was different after. Let us experience the epiphany with you rather
than you explaining it to us.
One of the best ways to bring us into the discovery with you is to put the story in a time
and a place. That way something will happen, because something always happens in
time and space, and the epiphany will be self-evident without you trying to explain it.
SIX: Speaking of something happening, something's gotta happen! That’s the #1
essential ingredient to a great story. But that doesn’t mean your story is just a long
string of “something happens” tied together by a whole bunch of ands.
Think cause and effect: Something happens in your story, and then BECAUSE OF THAT
something else happens. And then BECAUSE OF THAT something else happens. Then
BECAUSE OF THAT you have a big (or little) aha, and we all go home happy.
But before the aha, something’s gotta happen.
SEVEN: Be relevant. You gotta know who you're telling the story to, and why they
should care. What's in it for them? That problem from #1? Maybe that's a problem your
audience is currently facing. The transformation or change you went through? Maybe
that's the transformation your audience is seeking. If you're telling a story at a story
slam, or a dinner table, or around the fire, then the story gets to stand on its own for
story's sake. But if you're trying to convey an idea that you want me to say yes to, the
story's gotta point right to that idea.
We get to experience your transformation vicariously through you, making our world
just a little bit smaller. So make it matter to me as much as it matters to you.
EIGHT: Get specific. The universal is in the details. The truth is no one is really that
interested in your story (except maybe your mom and your best friend). What we’re
interested in is how your story sparks the stories inside ourselves. How it takes us into
a world we never knew before. How it reminds of the challenges we’ve overcome, or the
adventures we once had, or haven’t had yet.
We want to hear how your story teaches us how to be human. We want the universal
truth that lives inside your story. But the more deeply you go into the specific details of
your story (What color was the sky? What were you secretly thinking while the rain
poured down? What did your heart feel like when it fell to the floor?) Those specific
details of your story become the portal to the universal truth that I can then better
relate to.
NINE: Stakes! A stories gotta have stakes! A good story is about someone who
really really wants something they may or may not get. Or someone who has something
they're at risk of losing. The “may or may not get” and "at risk of losing" are the stakes.
That’s what puts us on the edge of our seats. That’s what makes us wonder -- (Is he
gonna get the girl? Is she gonna make it home? Is he gonna fall off the horse? Is she
gonna lose her job?) That's what makes us wonder how the story’s gonna end.
TEN: Which reminds me of one of my favorites: Tell the story as if
you don’t know how it ends. Bring us right into the action. Right into
the mystery. Right into the “What’s gonna happen next?!?!) If you tell it in
"reporter mode," reporting on a thing that happened a long time ago
that you already know the ending to, we’re more likely to yawn. But let
us be in on the discovery, and you’ll have us sitting on the edge of our
seats, leaning in for more.
I’ve got more tips where those came from! Visit
www.johannawalker.com/blog for more!
If you want help using stories to get your message across, or
your team needs help telling the story of your company, or you
just want to be a better storyteller, let's find a time to talk.
Set up a free discovery session at
www.johannawalker.com/discovery-session.
I can't wait to hear your story!
