Story Spark Day 29 - Fun Storytelling Challenge

Awesome! So welcome everyone to day 29 of Story Spark Session, and today I've planned something fun. So we have been practicing this 5C storytelling framework, which is Context, Conflict, Cure, Change, and Carry Out Message. So today we are not going to do a reflection or thinking. Today we are going to be more fun and impromptu, which means that we are going to create together a story. Okay, so this is going to be fun. One person will give the context, the other person will take that context and, and bring in the conflict and increase the conflict. The third person will introduce a cure, the fourth person will change and provide what happened after the cure is done, and and the 5th person will do the carryout message. Okay, clear with everyone? So we are going to— 5 people will do, which means one by one we all will do. And one person does the context, other person does the conflict, third person does the cure, fourth person does the change, and fifth person does the carryout. So let me start with the context, and then I will choose who is going to do the conflict one. So let me go here. Once upon a time, there were two friends, Ram and Sham. They hadn't met for 20 years. One day, Ram was at the airport and he suddenly sees Sham. He recognized Sham, but there was something which really disturbed Ram. Now let's go to Harsha. Harsha is not going to introduce the conflict here.

Okay, conflict, conflict. What type of conflict? Internal or external?

Anything. This is fun, so don't worry, don't think too much, just go with the flow.

Okay, Ram has watched the sham, but he was disturbed because sham became billionaire. So he is wearing rich watches, Rolex watches, and Armani suit, everything. But at, at their childhood, they— he is not rich. That is the conflict. I want to add, because of this he became disturbed. Hey, he is a poor person, he should be poor. But that person became rich. Why she— he became rich? And he, when he came to airport, he is sitting besides me. No, it should not be happen like that. Even though he's his friend, he want to— he has a jealousy on him. I want to add this conflict to the story.

Awesome. Okay, Venkat, time for you to introduce the cure.

Once Ram speak with Shyam, he recognized that he, he is like a childhood, like childhood. He does not show his pride or richness to Ram.

Okay, okay, let's go to Dr. Alka. So Dr. Alka, show us the change.

So before he speaks to Shyam, Ram is thinking all the negative thoughts, and then suddenly he realizes that, 'Oh, this is my friend. He must have worked very hard. Why not I go and talk to him, and why not I understand what does he do? And I have to love him because he is my friend, and I can learn something from him instead of being jealous of him. And I should feel happy for him and grateful that I have a friend like this who is so rich and who is doing so well in his life.' And when he gets that thought, he automatically— the mindset changes. And he becomes very, very happy. And slowly he goes and goes to his friend and hugs him and he says, "Sham, I'm so happy to see you. I'm so happy that you're wearing this watch," or whatever he wants to say to him. And the conflict is resolved when the jealousy changes into gratitude and the value of appreciation for your friend and learning from your friend, then everything changes. Again, I put too many messages.

That's okay. That's okay. I was supposed to do the carryout message, but that's okay. I think Yep, I think to me the carryout message would be sometimes we make things up in our mind. It's better to go out there and ask what is going on versus just assuming things. Awesome. All right, so this was just warm-up. Let's do another round, and this time I am going to be observer and you three will be participating. So let's start with Dr. Alka doing the context this time, and then it will go to next person. Yes. Bring a fresh new story, whatever is coming to your mind.

I was sitting in my room. I had just finished one session and I was just relaxing. I was just thinking how well did my session go. And in walks in my grandchild and it is time for dinner for him and he wants that biscuit in the bottle which is lying on my bed.

Okay, let's go to Venkat now for the conflict.

Ma'am, can you repeat once again?

So, so, can I go? Great, I know Harsha is very excited, but yeah, this is for everyone. I'll come to you for the next one. So, Venkat, the context is that, yeah, a grandmother who is a doctor is In between the sessions, she's doing a lot of sessions and she gets a message that her grandson wants to have that one particular biscuit. Now you need to introduce a conflict.

Yes, in between the session, grandson disturbs Dr. Alka and she understand because she is a doctor and she understand his child, and disturbing me is not— is acceptable. However, disturbing in front of others, it's not a good one. However, she managed to inform members politely and give the biscuit to Grandson.

Okay, let's go to Harsha now. You can do the cure.

Yeah, man, madam explains about what happens if you eat unhealthy food. She shows how, uh, how it will damage our health to the kid, and, uh, they, they shows you have to Taste is not important here. Health is important. Tongue, tongue spoils everything. If you can't control the tongue, it will destroy. If tongue— talk, talk, talk also come from the tongue. If you have to control the talk, health, you have to control the tongue. Tongue, that is the cure.

Awesome.

So yeah, let's, let's let Dr. Elka do the change and carry out message as well.

So I wanted to give him the cookie because he was adamant to have it. So he said that it was dinner time. See, the conflict is not about giving the cookie, it's about— not even about the taste, because it's too small to understand all this. It's about 2 and a half years of age. So the conflict was resolved because I did not give— I gave him the cookie. Because he was crying so much for it. And just at that time, my son walked into the room and he said, 'It's dinner time, dinner time, dinner time.' And he saw that boy eating cookie. 'Mommy, why are you giving him that cookie?' So it was just the opposite of what happened, of what you told. And I got into a fight with my son actually, and then it was not resolved at all till the end. So the resolution has not happened. And today I'm going to sit and resolve and talk to my son that it's okay to be a little flexible. It is okay to be I'm so sorry to disappoint all of you, but this all what you're telling never happened.

Because I'm okay. Yeah, that is not the purpose of this. The purpose is to have fun, and more importantly, in that fun, subtly think about all the stories and are we using all the components. So how many of you are up for one more round? Awesome. Okay, so this time I want Venkat to do the context. If you want to take 30 seconds, there's no hurry. Take 30 seconds, think about an interesting piece, and from there we'll go to the next person for the conflict.

Okay, uh, Friday evening I plan for, um, Monday work from home. Or I thought that if I take work from home, my productivity would not be perfect. So this, this whole week I didn't take work from home. So Monday I plan to take work from home, but my productivity forced me to do not take work from home. So productivity is Monday, it's important day. So productivity is important for you. Okay, I didn't bring laptop. Finally, I, I canceled my work from plan. And Monday morning, yesterday, I was— last night I couldn't get sleep well, so I asked my boss to take—

okay, stop, stop, stop.

Okay, you don't need to do too much conflict, so let's move to Harsha, who's gonna do the Conflict now. Conflict. And maybe also introduce the cure.

Yes, Mr. Venkat had the laptop. At last, he found the laptop, but it was hanged. He don't know how to repair it or that. So what to do? That was the conflict. Unfortunately, his old friend came and he is expert in computers. So that was the cure. He managed to operate the laptop and he repaired the operating system or whatever it may be, and that was the cure. First one conflict is the laptop was hand, and that friend, unfortunately a friend came and, uh, he operated the laptop. That was the cure.

Okay, so let's go to Dr. Alka for change and carry out message.

Reach out for help when you're in trouble, and, um, there are always— the universe is always helping you because the friend appeared at that time and helped him to get out of that problem. This is the message I can think of. What about you, Haritosh Srivastav?

No, this is, this is good. Yeah, and change could have been that, yeah, after his friend He talked to his friend, his friend agreed to help him and did all the repair and everything. And then suddenly the laptop restarted and Venkat was on cloud nine to see his best friend in the family, his laptop. All right, okay.

Still it's fun.

It is fun, yeah. This is why this is called a fun exercise today, not monotonous, right? So this is very, very important because at times when you go to speak speak to people at a networking event, you're taking a session, you're talking to new people, you will not have time to do all of the element or do all the mentor planning. At that time you have to go with the flow as well. So this is why impromptu speaking and storytelling is also important. And I thought that, okay, we are getting into something which we are doing again same the framework, how can I spice it up? So let's say, okay, let me try this one. The feedback for all of you would be that yes, it is the first time you're doing it impromptu. So maybe when next time you're doing, think about how you can add more vivid imagery. How you can let them people be in the scene versus, okay, I was here, I did that, I was this friend. Say, bring that it was Monday morning, 9 AM, and I was confused that should I go to office, should I work from home? And then that productivity thing keep haunting me and then finally I decided, okay, let me go to the office and I go to the office and I reach to my bag, open the zip and laptop is not there. Oh my God, what do I do? Now I need to go back. So I take the train, go back and I go back, I open my laptop, I finally press the power button but something was off, it was not getting on. I tried again, and the laptop is hanged. I do not know, I can't go back to office, I can't even work from home, I am in a problem. And then suddenly I see my friend Harsha. Hey Harsha, how are you? Good to see you. And then I remember that Harsha is a great computer hardware person, he always helped me. So I am hesitant, but I do ask, Harsha, can you really help me? I really need to log into office, I am getting late, this is very serious. And Harsha, the person, he said, okay, let me have a look. Harsha opens his toolbox, brings out a few screws and all, and opens laptop, does a few things, and within 5 minutes he said that it is done. I can't believe, but let me see. And I press the power button and voilà, the laptop is open. I'm able to log in and I give a huge hug to Harsha saying thank you so much, friend. And that day I realized that you need to have great friend in your company and you should also reach out for help if you need. Just I took the same story but I added scene by scene. So whenever you're doing this impromptu, try to add scene to scene to scene to scene. Making sense?

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

Awesome. Okay, so let's go around the room and do a quick reflection. And yeah, so let's start with Harsha.

Yes, this was extraordinary session because we collectively done Not before that, from before this, we, we had a story prepared and we used to say like speech. But today we don't know what we'll do, we don't know what we are doing unexpectedly, extraordinary.

By—

I, I am asking you, uh, keep daily this one, one story for this, this time for this one, this type of things. So we had a collective, uh, coordination will be there with the group members. Yes, and that was my session. If you like, you can implement.

Thank you, thank you for that. Thank you for the suggestion and feedback. Yes, Venkat, how about you?

I would like to share 3 things. One is imagination power. We get imagination power Second thing is, as Harsha said, teamwork. Yes. Third is, for the person saying context, he would fund— he got a big fund because he started the contest in one way, and it goes to a different direction by different person's perspective. And finally it reached in some other place. That's a very great fun.

Absolutely, absolutely. That is why this is so impromptu and unexpected. So yes, yes, Dr.

Alka, I'm learning is about going into your subconscious mind and everything which is inside only is going to come out. Harsha is making so many movies and so many stories he has in his heart and he too was able to tell the conflict in a good way. And I think what I learned today maximum is Haritosh Srivastav, what you said and how you described the whole element, the situation. It was so visual, I could actually imagine it, what you described. And the words that you used and the dialogues that you used— hey Harsha, can you help me? What are you doing? And then he comes and he helps you. So two things that I learned today— dialogue is very important and description of the scene is very important, and the conflict, describing it properly.

So awesome, awesome. So we didn't do it today, but let's collectively write story power to all of us. So let's everybody write story power to you and this was a fun session and hopefully we'll do one more session tomorrow, Wednesday, for this one similar fun exercise. And we have the mastermind session tomorrow because most of the people voted for that. So we'll have the special mastermind session on how to build an executive presence. It's very important and relevant for all the working professional entrepreneurs and coaches. Which will, which will help them elevate their charisma. Yes, so that's pretty much it. Thank you so much, everyone. Today is day 29, so tomorrow will be 1 month completed for StorySpark session. So thank you so much. As I say every time, until next time, keep learning, keep growing, and keep going out of your comfort zone. Have a great day.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.