Category Archives for "Storytelling Strategies"

6 Ways You Can Become More Likeable as a Speaker

Can you become more likeable as a speaker? I believe so. When I first started speaking in 1998, I don’t believe I was very likeable. Why? It’s because my goal was to finish the speech rather than to create an experience for my audience. In fact, I could give my speech the same exact way […]

4 Little-Known Costly Mistakes Speakers Make with their Stories

Over the years I’ve trained thousands of speakers and personally coached hundreds of them and I see many of the same costly mistakes being made. Once we fix these mistakes, their stories connect with their audiences at much deeper levels. Reference Story To understand the 4 points below, listen to the following 4-minute reference story […]

How to Make Your Speech Emotional

If your story does not elicit emotion, chances are it is not doing its job. You want your audience to not only hear your message but to also FEEL it. Here is a fantastic way to take your audience on that often-elusive roller-coaster ride of emotions that will keep them engaged and invested in your […]

The Much Needed Formula that Makes Your Audience Want More

Over the years I’ve realized there is one formula that most speakers rarely use that, if they used, would keep their audiences hooked and hungry for the entire presentation. It doesn’t take long to put into place but it has a very long-lasting effect on the audience because it makes them constantly say, “Tell me […]

Use the Story Step-Out Method to Connect and Re-connect with your Audience

As a speaker, when you tell a story, it’s important to not have it come off looking like a stage-play. Instead, it should feel like an ongoing conversation with your audience mixed with some scenes that you invite them to experience. The Story Step-out Method will help you strike that delicate balance between telling your […]

How to Get Your Audience’s Attention with Your Very First Words

I’ve always enjoyed using what I call the “Startle and Wrap” method to get my audience’s attention because it does 3 things: It makes them confused It leads to curiosity It hooks them in because they want to clear up their confusion and satisfy their curiosity. Take a look at how you can use the […]

Storytelling – A Key Secret to Telling Great Stories

Great stories are not just something your audience hears but something they feel. Storytelling at its best creates an experience wherein your audience feels like they were there when it happened. Here is one key secret to telling great stories in your speeches. Take a look at the following storytelling video lesson. A Storytelling Secret […]

The Speech Delivery Tool that Every Speaker Needs

How would you like to keep your audience on the edge of their seats wondering what you’re going to say next? How would you like to feel a deeper connection with your audiences than you ever have in the past? How would you like to move on with this lesson? Me too, so let’s jump […]

Tools to Bring Your Stories to Life through Your Characters – Video Post

Question: How do you breathe life into a story? Answer: Characters Question: How do you make your characters feel real? Answer: Through subtle differences in voice, posture, positioning, expressions and dialogue. Here is your video lesson on using characters to connect deeper and laugh harder with your audience. My Update Since Creating This Video Nowadays […]

The Storytelling Secret I Never Told – Until Now

Over the years I’ve learned and taught quite a bit about storytelling, but there has been one secret I held close to the vest. Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to share it but I needed a story that would illustrate it.   What I learned from Keith Harrell It all started when I watched […]