- The Storyteller
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- What is the outcome you seek with your story?
Each week, we share a practical technique to become a more effective storyteller and analyze a video that demonstrates its use in the real-world.
Quote of the week
“Speech is power: speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
What is the outcome you seek with your story?
Have you ever found yourself in a nerve-wracking situation of having so much to convey but not sure of where to begin? It could be at a job interview, a business pitch or navigating your team through a new project!
We’ve all been there, feeling the pressure to say ‘something.’
In this issue, we look at a simple yet powerful technique to make storytelling a compelling way to overcome this.
Begin by answering the following questions:
Who is your audience? Knowing your audience is the first step to successful storytelling.
What is the desired emotion you want the audience to feel after listening to the story?
What specific action do you want your listener to take?
By asking and answering these questions with clarity on your intent, you can assure yourself of the outcome you seek.
In their 2001 book, “Guide to Presentations” Lynn Russell and Mary Munter, introduced a framework that they termed AIM: Audience, Intent and Message. It is this second step of their framework we are focusing on today.
For instance, while interviewing for a new job, your overall intent may be getting a job offer. The individual interviews with a hiring manager, a future team mate or an internal customer may have varying intentions all of which might have to be identified and met to land the job. This may range from building credibility, demonstrating specific skills or strengths or moving to the next stage of the process.
Similarly a typical multi-level B2B technology sale, might involve two or more people, whose needs and concerns will be very different. You may have to sell to engineers, the project manager, a divisional or general manager and possibly even a purchasing manager. Your intent may be a vision match with a general manager, favorable terms with the purchasing manager, overcoming objections with the engineering user and providing peace-of-mind for the project manager.
Asking yourself if you want to ‘inspire, inform, or persuade’ is a way to identify intent.
When the intent and outcome become clear, you can craft the relevant message and build an appropriate narrative.
Video
Marc Mero, former amateur boxer and professional wrestler stirred the internet 8 years ago with his speech "The Powerful Message About a Mother’s Love.” Watch his speech to a middle school class, and see if you can determine his intent.
Was his intent to ‘inspire, inform, or persuade’ or something else altogether?
What would you have done differently?
What will you incorporate the next time you tell a story?