3. WHAT IS A STORY? What makes something a story? Turn and talk
to the person next to you.
4. FOR IT TO BE A STORY... Time has to pass. There is a
beginning, middle and end. Something has to happen.
5. EXERCISE: You already know what makes a great story. Break
into 5 groups. 1. Each group will get a prompt with part of a story
on it. 2. Each group will make up a story to fill in the details.
3. Each group will have one minute to perform their story for their
larger group. 4. As you watch, investigate the question, What makes
a great story? 5. Choose 2 insights to share with the whole
group.
6. STORY VS. DESCRIPTION How did you feel differently when
listening to the story vs. the description?
7. WHY STORYTELLING?
8. Stories are like a PARTY for your brain. We cant help but
LOVE them.
9. Our brains are addicted to stories because they teach us how
to overcome problems.
10. STORIES allow us to create ORDER out of the chaotic.
11. In a way, humans are not made of skin and bones as much as
were made of stories. -Sue Monk Kidd
12. WITHOUT STORY Language center activated only. WORDS
MEANING
13. WITH STORY OXYTOCIN (the CONNECTION chemical) DOPAMINE (the
HAPPINESS chemical) FLOODED WITH FEEL- GOOD HORMONES!
14. Stories are designed to persuade an audience of a
storytellers worldview.
15. STORIES SYNCHRONIZE BRAINS Our brain lights up, as it would
if we were experiencing the story ourself.
16. YOUR BRAIN IS CHANGED FOR AFTER YOU HEAR OR READ A GOOD
STORY. DAYS
17. Stories make us feel connected to one another. When we can
relate to a story, it makes us feel that WERE NOT ALONE.
18. People care more about WHY THAN WHAT. STORIES SHOW WHATS AT
STAKE AND WHY IT MATTERS.
19. When beginning a story, present a question in the mind of
the audience. ? Ask: what will make someone want to keep listening
to this story?
20. GREAT STORIES... have dramatic tension. THE STAKES are
high. THEY MAKE the audience wonder, WHAT WILL happen next? How
will they overcome this challenge? How will this end?
21. A protagonist faces a challenging experience. THE HEROS
JOURNEY (archetypal story told in many cultures)
22. They struggle to overcome the challenge,
23. But then they discover the answer and strength within
themselves (overcoming the challenge may not look like they
originally thought).
24. Their reward for overcoming the challenge is the gift of
the insight/lesson.
25. At the heart of every story is A CHANGE IN PERSPECTIVE. The
protagonist is not the same at the end as they were at the
beginning.
26. GREAT STORIES describe a personal transformation. CHANGE IS
THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENT OF A STORY.
27. GREAT STORIES... Present lessons that encourage people to
pursue their higher values- Believing in our power, choosing our
own self-definition, caring for one another, acting on behalf of
one another.
28. GREAT STORIES... Make the audience have an A-Ha Moment. The
moment the protagonist learns how to get through the challenge.
Most emotional moment of the story.
29. THE AH-HA MOMENT Its when your audience suddenly
understands the message within the story. It reveals the purpose
and meaning of the story.
30. GREAT STORIES... are specific, concrete and personal. Small
story, universal theme.
31. GREAT STORIES do not just describe a series of events, they
are about how that series of events changed the way the storyteller
sees the world.
32. Instead of describing how you see the world, tell a story
about HOW you came to see the world that way. TIP:
33. In your story, include two PARTICULAR MOMENTS/SCENES, where
we are pulled into a specific place and time.
34. GREAT STORIES... Include memorable, sensory details that
are relevant to the core message. Paint a scene with words.
35. When something makes us FEEL, we remember it. GREAT
STORIES... Are emotional. They convey the internal motivations and
emotions of the characters.
36. GREAT STORIES... SHOW, NOT TELL What did you see, taste,
feel, smell?
37. GREAT STORIES... Have an element of surprise or something
unexpected
38. GREAT STORIES Show vulnerability. Vulnerability = Emotional
Exposure.
39. VULNERABILITY IS THE ONLY BRIDGE TO CONNECTION.
40. GREAT STORIES... Are simple- they only include details that
illustrate the message.
41. Take out everything that doesnt serve the story. ONLY
include the details that add up to the Ah-Ha moment.
42. HOW TO STRUCTURE A POWERFUL STORY
43. HOW TO STRUCTURE YOUR STORY: STORY ARCH CLIMAX CLOSURE
CONCLUSION The A-Ha Moment. Ground it in a specific location. How
is life different because of this realization? Include a detail or
anecdote about how the impact was experienced. Relate the story
back to your audience. Empower them to apply the moral of the story
to their lives. CONTEXT The hook: set the stage and introduce who,
what, when, and where. CONFLICT Present the problem. Include a
detail or anecdote about how the challenge was experienced. JOURNEY
TO CHANGE Struggle of the journey makes the character change.
44. CONTEXT: THE BEGINNING OF YOUR STORY Set the stage and
introduce who, what, when and where.
45. CONFLICT: PRESENT YOUR PROBLEM Set up what the character
wants, so the listener wonders how they will get it. Include a
memory/scene at the moment of realizing the problem/asking the
question.
46. JOURNEY TO CHANGE: Struggles on the journey that make the
character change.
47. CLIMAX: THE MOMENT OF CHANGE THE A-HA MOMENT. Include a
memory/scene at the moment of realizing the solution/finding the
answer. Take people to where you were and what you remember seeing,
feeling, thinking, hearing, smelling.
48. CLOSURE: What happened as a result of the Ah-Ha
Moment?
49. CONCLUSION: FUTURE State what the future looks like for the
protagonist. Relate the moral of the story back to the
audience.
50. UNEARTHING YOUR STORIES We are going to identify your most
powerful stories.
51. PERSONAL TIMELINE EXERCISE 15 minutes Plot the major
turning points and experiences in your life. Indicate at least 10
experiences that changed you.
52. EXPLORING YOUR PERSONAL STORY IM BORN! MOVE TO PASO ROBLES
MOVE TO LA QUINTA MOVE TO SACRAMENTO RECEIVE FULL SCHOLARSHIP TO
NYU. GO TO NIGERIA OUTWARD MOMENTS INNER SHIFTS PARENTS BREAK UP,
START DATING ETHAN I see injustice for the first time. Commit to
strengthening humanity. Leave Catholicism. TRAVEL AROUND THE WORLD
WITH SEMESTER AT SEA Comparative injustice. Develop my philosophy
on the world. Beliefs and worldview rocked. Ungrounded. PALESTINE I
begin calling myself a photographerFailure in school = Proving
mentality.
53. We cannot think without language, we cannot process
experience without story. -Christina Baldwin
54. STORIES HOLD OUR IDENTITIES TOGETHER.
55. And defining a cause for each effect.
56. What is the meaning that you have taken from the
experiences that youve had?
57. HOW TO CRAFT YOUR PERSONAL STORIES CHOOSING A STORY (FOR
THE STORY SLAM)
58. Two Methods: EXPERIENCE BELIEF BELIEF EXPERIENCE
59. Start with an experience. Something that happened- a
challenge you faced, a goal you had, a person you met, a project
you started. Reflect on what you learned from that experience and
how it changed the way you see the world. Craft a story that adds
up to that realization/belief. EXPERIENCE BELIEF
60. Start with your core messages. What do you want to say to
the world? Whats the message that you just have to share as a
result of your experiences? Then try to remember experiences youve
had that taught you or confirmed that belief in you. Build a story
that adds up to that belief. BELIEF EXPERIENCE
61. DIGGING UP YOUR STORIES WORKSHEET Experience Belief Work on
first part of worksheet.
62. CHOOSE 1 EXPERIENCE that was particularly transformative
SHARE WITH A PARTNER IN 2 MINUTES: 1. The story of that experience
2. How it affected you. 3. What you learned from it. PARTNER: Be a
story detective: -What catches your attention? -What makes the
story powerful? -What are the ingredients that make it work?
63. 7 STEPS TO A POWERFUL STORY
64. STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR AUDIENCE.
65. CREATE AWARENESS INFLUENCE BEHAVIOR CHANGE ATTITUDES What
is your goal in telling this story?
66. STEP 2: IDENTIFY YOUR AH-HA! MOMENT What do you want your
audience to realize? What is the message you feel called to share
with your audience?
67. Think about the shift in perspective you want the audience
to have. Do you have a story of when you had that shift in
perspective yourself? STEP 3: BUILD A STORY AROUND YOUR AH-HA!
MOMENT
68. THINK: What story can I tell to make my audience have
[this] ah-ha moment?
69. STEP 4: BUILD THE STRUCTURE OF THE STORY CLIMAX CH ALLEN GE
RESOLUTION The Beginning Middle End Ah-Ha Moment Setting &
Introduction
70. STEP 5: REVISIT MEMORIES TO create scenes with vivid,
sensory details.
71. STEP 6: ELIMINATE UN-NECESSARY DETAILS
72. STEP 6: PRACTICE & GET FEEDBACK
73. STORY SLAM
74. You will have 3.5 minutes to share your story. STORY
SLAM
75. WRITE YOUR CORE MESSAGE (what is the lesson of the story?)
Use this as a guide to decide what to include and what to take
out.
76. Take a moment to draw or visualize your story.
77. TIPS FOR SHARING YOUR STORY Connect to your heart. speak
YOUR truth.
78. None of it matters without AUTHENTICITY.
79. NERVES = Your message inside of you, wanting to be shared
with the world.
80. REFLECTIONS How was the experience of crafting your story
and sharing it? How did it feel to share your story? What
realizations did you have listening to other peoples stories?
