How to Actually Create Your Story: The Complete Structure | Ch. 23

Checkity check check. Oh my gosh, this has been a long awaited. We are at the long awaited chapter where we get to the nitty gritty of actually crafting the story. All of this has been lead up to this, and hopefully you've walked away with some really great nuggets that you can already keep in mind as you craft your story. But this is going to literally going to be like, okay, start here and then do this and then do this and then do this, which is exciting and awesome. So welcome back. I hope you, if you're like stumbled upon this and you're thinking to yourself, yes, I wanna learn how to craft a great story, you're in the right place. I'm gonna walk you through how to do it. But please know this, if you're just listening to this quote unquote chapter, it is one chapter in a whole book. About speaking your story called Speaking Story. My name is Sally Koering Zimney. I'm the author and obviously narrating this as well. And I, just because I want more people to have this, this information and these ideas, I'm just putting it out into the world. So here it is. It's free here on YouTube and free here on your podcast feed. And it's free because I want more people to feel empowered and clear about how to do that. And so Yes, this bit right here that you're about to dive into and listen to is gonna give you the nitty gritty nuggets of do this, then do this, then do this, and yay, fantastic. And there's a lot more to this. And the whole 22 other chapters before this, or 23 other chapters, yeah, this is chapter 23. So the 22 chapters before this, plus an intro, plus a prologue, is setting the stage for this. Because the truth is, if you just learn this part, how to do it, you're missing some really essential concepts around making it contextual. You're missing all the deep, deep, real vulnerable ideas around how you become someone who's willing to do this and Uh, so it's not just about the how. Speaking is never just about the how. It's about so much more than that. So while I want you to learn this framework, and it's a beautiful framework that you can take with you and use in all kinds of different contexts, I also wanna make sure that you keep digging. Into all this, that you go back and listen to the first 21 chapters of this and really know that if you want to create impactful, moving storytelling, storytelling that will, as I say in the subtitle of the book, make your mark, help you pitch ideas that people wanna bring to life, and ignite meaningful change in this world, then just following the how-to tactics here are not going to do it. It requires a little bit more, but this will make it easier. This, this is a great place to start. So I'm really, really glad that you're here. There's two big pieces to this. You're going to learn what I call a simple story framework. It's my 3 M's. That is the piece that it's like from a super high level. You can take that and use it and it will serve you well in a million different contexts. And if you just walk away from this whole thing, with the 3 M's, you're good. Okay? That gets you so far. It gets you so far. But if you're somebody who's like, "Okay, but I need more details. Tell me more, please." But when you say "moment" and you say, "Tell the story," like, "I need more than that," then we really deep dive in this chapter on the moment, which is the story. How do we bring a story to life? What goes first? And then what do we do? And then what do we do after that? Okay. So as, as I share this with you, please know I have so much respect for people who do it differently. There's a million ways to do this. And what I tried to do is I brought this to life, and this is based on, gosh, 30 years of coaching and all kinds of different contexts and working with a lot of different people that I wanted to give you a framework to work from, but not feel tied to. To not feel like this is the only way to do it, and you have to follow this exactly. I just want you to feel free to find your own way in this, but perhaps this gives you a spine to work from and to build from, and that you can trust. And you can. You can really trust this. Okay. Hee hee hee hee hee hee. I'm so excited. Here's the nitty gritty. Let's dive in. Hey everybody, and welcome to This Moved Me, a podcast about creating talks that move the world. With me, your host, Sally Koering Zimney. This complimentary episode of the Speaking Story audiobook is brought to you in part by the Movers Collective. If you are listening to a book about speaking stories, I have a feeling you already know that you have a message worth sharing. Maybe you've been on a stage or two. Maybe it's still just a dream kind of sitting in your chest waiting. Either way, I want you to know that there's a real path from where you are right now to a speaking career career that actually pays, one that fits your life, your message, and the change that you want to make in the world. That path starts with two free resources I want to give you. The first is the Movers Roadmap. This is a clear-eyed look at what it actually takes to build a career as a professional speaker. The second is an audio series that I recorded live Uh, and this developed with my own clients and it's called the Power Pitching Push. And in this series, I walk you through exactly how to pitch yourself as a speaker so that you can get some gigs. You will get a real taste of what it's like to work with me. Both are free. Go grab them. Sallykoeringzimney.com/pitching. Path, sally-koering-zimney.com/path. And when you're ready to go all in, The Movers Collective is where we can take you from talented to professional. All right, now let's get into the show. Chapter 23. Creating Your Story. I'm obsessed with giving the audience something they don't see coming. Jordan Peele. We are finally there. We're going to lay out the structure of creating your story. In this chapter, you're going to hear echoes of everything we've talked about throughout the book so far and what it looks like to bring all of the aspects we've covered to life. I'll share the key elements of the structure of a great story and show you some examples from real-life talks so that you can see the structure in action. But first, we need to start with why this story structure works so well. Theoretically, there are a few structural examples out there that I think are illuminating for us as we build our structure together. Here are 3 examples of story structures that work. Example number 1: Marshall Ganz and Me, Us, Now. First, let's look at this example from Marshall Ganz, a Harvard professor on narrative and social movements. In his work, he's found that stories that shape social movements—I would call them leadership stories or stories that create some kind of change—they are built on the structure of Me, Us, Now. Me, your personal story, in other words, your experience. Us: What does your personal story mean for all of us? And now: Given the world we live in now and given the needs we have now, what do we do? This is an especially powerful framework because it leverages the power of a personal story, connects it to the audience, and pivots it all around what is happening in the current political and social context. Example number 2: Josh Shipp, and me, we, you. Josh Shipp is a wonderful speaker I've had the privilege of working with. His structure is me, we, you, and he suggests this story structure to help you challenge your audience, quote, without being a jerk. He starts his structure in the same way as Marshall Ganz, by putting your story at the center. So me, your personal story. We, your story universalized to the audience. And thirdly, you—what you can do with that idea. You start by telling your own story, owning up to your part in the challenge or problem. Once you've done that, you can bring everybody else into it without causing them to put up their defenses or creating a dynamic of lecturing or condescension. And once you've admitted your own part in the struggle, it's easier to challenge people in a way that feels helpful so that ultimately people might agree with you and act accordingly because of it. Example number 3 is my structure, and we call it Moment, Meaning, Move. Both of the above structures are powerful and helpful given the right context. I've always done something similar. This is the language that we're gonna use as we talk about structure and story, and it builds on the persuasive framework of Story First that we've already established. Moment, the story. Meaning the connection the audience has to that story, and move, what you want the audience to do with your idea. In other words, what's next? As we talked about earlier in the book, the story or the moment is what pulls the audience in, and what we say after the story is really the powerful, important leadership part. It's when we get to make meaning and influence the change we wanna make. That's what makes this work different from a StorySLAM or a Moth experience or entertainment storytelling. What makes this a leadership story is that you're going to do something with your story. You're not just going to write a beautiful story and then stand up and speak that moment. You're also following that story up with meaning. The final element of the structure that is essential to persuasive speaking is move, or where we lead people to what's next. We'll dig deeper into each of these elements later in this chapter, but right now, I realize you may be thinking, "But Sally, how do I actually create this? That's why I'm here. This is all theoretical until I put it into action." Don't worry, because that is next. Sally's structure, element number 1, the moment, aka The story. Let's dig into how you can bring elements of the moment or story to life. First, here are some definitions. Plot. The plot is the basic happenings in the story. This happened first, then this, then this, and so on. However, for a plot to be a compelling and change-making story, it must have more than just a list of happenings. Most stories go something like this on a very high level. You have a character, other words, the protagonist, someone we're cheering for, the person whom the story seems to be about. That character faces some kind of obstacle, an issue, challenge, or opportunity. Something changes. In other words, the point of no return. Does it get resolved or maybe gets worse? Who knows? But things can't be the same as they were before. Inside this plot, is where we get to play with all the ingredients we've been talking about: making the story visual, showing the harm, finding a connection to the audience, building your character, establishing the relationship in the story, etc. Please note, I've made for you a plot handout that you can download so you can plot out all the parts we are about to talk through, and you can find this link in the Spark section of Part 4, or just go to speakingstory.com. Bringing the plot to life. Now let's talk about how we can turn plot into something a little more tangible. Step 1, we are going to identify the point of no return before, yes, before you begin creating your story. The first thing you need to do is identify the big moment of change or the point of no return. When you know what moment you're moving toward—in other words, the moment where everything changes—it helps you filter out what is and isn't needed to get you and the audience there clearly. When your point of no return is clear, it helps you avoid the generic story that doesn't bring us into a specific moment and never seems to go anywhere or loses people along the way. Those are the stories that can feel like you're talking about something, rather than taking us to a specific place or point. Think about the scuba diving story I shared in Chapter 18. The point of no return is the moment when the water's coming up, up, up above my face. That experience, that moment is what we wanna move people toward. It's the moment that people will recognize us empathetically and emotionally, and they will feel with the speaker. It's the moment where the audience recognizes the universal experience of being a human facing a scary moment. It's the moment when the insula and the mirror neurons are firing and the audience is remembering their own moments of fear and courage. So before you can figure out the rest of the plot and what details you do and do not want to include, we need to know where your story is going. We're creating the story to move toward that moment. Let's pause for a pro tip. Because if you're having trouble finding the point of no return, think of it this way: it's likely the reason you decided to share that particular story. My scuba diving story would have been different, and therefore would have created a different meaning for the audience, if, let's say, I'd had a run-in with a shark. That might be my point of no return. But instead, it's about my fear, perfectly embodied by the water going up up, up over my head. Step number 2, we establish the character. One of the beautiful things about story is that it allows your audience to get to know you. It's such a powerful source for connection, and you can tell them so much and convince them so much without actually having to tell them much or do much convincing. But a lot of that rests on how we establish the character. This is the moment when you get to define the world of your story and yourself. This is the moment that makes you, well, you. The more honestly and specifically you can reveal yourself in the details of the story, the more clearly we can see the character in our heads and connect with them. How you establish the character tells us a lot about who you are, and it serves a really important purpose in the construction and buildup of the story. The details you choose to include or highlight, which often include the following, tell us a lot about the character. What is your perspective? What is your life like? What do you see or notice? What do you take part in or ignore? What does life look like through your eyes? Whatever you reveal about yourself in these moments, as you establish your character not only tells us about you, it also establishes the reality of the story and the logical reasoning for the plot to continue as it does, building the world of the story in a way that makes sense, so that as you bring the audience closer to the point of no return, it makes sense for the experience you want to create. What kind of character would do the thing you're going to tell us about? If, for example, your character is going to do something risky and you need to emphasize how out of character it is, then the details you want to include as you establish your character need to underline what a safety-oriented person they are. And through the details you reveal about the character, you're intentionally building the eventual reveal of the point of no return. The details you include in the story are important, but maybe even more important are the details you don't include. You don't need details that may be true about the character but that don't help you move the story forward and get your audience to the point of no return. For example, along with being afraid of oceans, I was really into scrapbooking at the time of the scuba diving story. It's a fun tidbit, but it's not needed in the story. Please know that the scrapbooking adventure went quickly out the door within the next year. Please don't judge me. So, Every piece included in your story needs to be intentional as you move the audience toward the point of no return. This means the following: exclude distracting details, include details that move us toward your point of no return, and include details that clearly establish you and your world. Step number 3, we establish The scene. After you've established the character, you're gonna establish the scene by including specific and intentional details like the following. You're gonna paint the picture of where you are so that we can see it in our mind's eye. What is the context? What's happening? What was the day like? How were you feeling? What was going on? How does this day differ from other days? Including these specifics can help the story come to life as a visual image in each audience member's brain. And help them walk toward the point of no return. Along with moving the story along in an intentional and specific way, establishing the scene with vivid details is essential to turn on the persuasive power of story. With each vivid image and detail, you turn on that imaginative connection with your audience, the building blocks of empathy and connection that help the audience remember the story and its meaning. If you include visual details and help them see what's happening, you and your audience become co-creators of the story together. For example, if I talk about my elementary school playground and describe it a bit as I establish the scene of my elementary crush Matt and the daily game of chase I played with him—I was fast, but he was faster—I might share with you the railroad ties that held in the crunchy pebbles and always slowed us down and left us dusty. Or the playground assistant who didn't like us running through and blew her whistle at us. Or the giant swings where we'd always end up spending the last joyful minute seeing if we might get married by swinging on the swings at the same pace. What happens in your mind as I share some of those details? Do you think about your elementary school playground? Or a place of childhood wonder and delight? It probably has some elements of my story in it. But it's also your playground, your elementary crush, your pebbles, your swings, your playground assistant's whistle. It becomes a beautiful co-creation that is made possible by a visual scene. And that co-creation helps your audience remember and personalize not only the moment and story, but also its impact on them, the meaning of this story for them. When I was at a conference for professionals in the presentation industry, I got to hear neuroscientist Carmen Simon speak. Carmen has done lots of research on how to help your audience remember what you've worked so hard to present. And one of the biggest factors is your capability to create visual images in the minds of your audience. Carmen went out into the audience of this conference and asked a man about his first date with his spouse. His answer: "We got ice cream." "Okay, great," Carmen said. "Tell us more. Where were you? What were you wearing? Set the scene for us a bit." As an audience member watching this exchange, I can still tell you that the man was wearing a bright green shirt and that they were standing against a fence looking out across a beach. I have a very clear picture in my mind of his first date with his wife, and this was over 7 years ago. Do I know exactly where they were or what the exact scene looked like? No, but the image in my head was co-created with that speaker based on my experience with a fence, a beach, and ice cream. The bright green shirt in my head is very clear, even if it's different from the bright green shirt in reality. That moment illustrated the incredible power of visual imagery. And the act of co-creating with your audience. Creating the visual image in the minds of your audience is an essential part of memory, connection, and emotional engagement. Okay, pro tip for you. Sometimes establishing the character and the scene overlap to some extent, and that's totally okay. It's not a hard and fast rule to have these elements happen chronologically, but generally we wanna know about the who, aka the character, before we can fully see the where, or the scene. Step number 4: We lay out the action. Once you have established the character and the scene, it's time to move the audience through the action that leads them to your point of no return. Think of it as, "This happened, then this happened, and this happened too." Each step leads to the next and has a purpose. One more pro tip for you here: look for moments where you can let dialogue come to life in your story. Anytime you can put actual words in people's mouths lights up the imagination and we experience the moment almost as if we were there. That character comes alive. Step number 5: Zero in on the point of no return. Remember that the point of no return is the aha moment, the place where things change. In Scuba Diving Story, Chapter 18, this was the moment when I was in the water and I'm freaking out. So a pro tip for you here: slow the story down. You're going to treat your point of no return almost like it's a slow-motion moment. Slowing down lets the audience know that this is an important moment, it also gives us a chance to pull people in and find all of those little details to share. People underutilize the slowdown, so don't be afraid of leaning into this moment, taking your time. It may seem a little dramatic when you first play with slowing down, but if you can be deliberate about it, it can really help your audience become engaged. We are drama creatures, after all. All right, let's review the plot. There's a character who faces an obstacle, something happens, and then things are different afterward. Within that overarching plot, and after you've identified your point of no return, you're going to do the following: establish a character, paint the picture of the scene, lay out the action, and then zero in on the point of no return. As you do that, you're going to look for moments when you can bring in some dialogue that help bring that story to life. The truth is, there are a million ways to bring a story to life. I found that these basic elements give you just enough structure to play with and guidance in crafting something that is likely to engage and tap into the power of storytelling. All without you needing to be a professional storyteller. Sometimes working within a structure actually allows and encourages creativity. Ultimately, as with all things in speaking, whatever you stand up to say needs to feel right for you and in full integrity so that your voice, your story, and your particular approach, your perspective, can be revealed. All of this is really lovely in theory, but what does it really look like when we're up on our feet and in our bodies? Let's take a look at a few examples that show the different ways that this simple structure can come to life. Here's an example of a story that is not utilizing the structure of the moment. This is from one of my awesome speakers who was working on becoming a well-known keynote speaker around the topic of resilience. Here's the before: I'll never forget the feeling of hearing my phone buzzing at 3:37 AM on the 20th of October, 2012. This was another turning point, but one that I never saw coming. One that began with my mom's panicked voice telling me, "Your sister's been in a serious accident," and to pray to God that she would survive. Okay, let's walk through the structure of this story and see how we can improve it using the steps we covered earlier. Identify the point of no return. This is clearly an important moment for the speaker. The point of no return is clear. It's the phone call where she learns that her sister was in a car accident. This is where everything changed for her, and it's the moment she's trying to bring to life. She was sleeping. Her mom called in the middle of the night saying her sister had been in an accident and that she might die. This story is the emotional core of the entire talk, and there's so much potential here. Number 2: Establish the character. In a story this short, is it possible to establish a character? Yes, it is. Every little detail reveals something about you: where you're at, how you're behaving, what you're thinking in the moment, the way the world is from your perspective. As we experience the world from your perspective, we start to connect to a universality within your specific experience, like with the experience of being woken up in the middle of the night because the phone's ringing. That is a universally frightening moment. Establish the scene. We want to paint the picture of the context of the situation. In this example, life is normal, and then it's not. Some details are really going to help this come to life even more. And number 4, we're going to lay out the action. This happened, then this happened, and this happened. And then lastly, we will zero in on the point of no return. The plot will bring us slowly to the point of no return so that we can relive this life-altering moment with the speaker. So when we think about how to improve this story, we wanna do a few things. We're gonna slow down the point of no return even more and add more emotive visual details. The speaker is specific in the sense that it's 3:37 AM, but I also want to know what it felt like for her specifically. What did she experience? What did she see? What did that look and feel like? We need to be brought more into the details of the moment before we can experience it fully with her. Also, in the before version, the speaker slams us with the emotional gut punch fairly quickly before we've had a chance to get a feel for the panic and the worry that always accompanies those middle of the night phone calls. So we wanna create space for that universal emotive resonance that exists in every story. We're gonna stay in the story with the audience and not analyze it too soon. So instead of creating the moment, letting us experience it with her, the speaker's telling us about the moment, already analyzing it for us when she says, "It was a moment that I never saw coming." We don't want to go there quite yet. So as the speaker, stay with us in the story, in the present moment. Keep us engaged in the story before stepping outside it to comment on it. Don't tell us the point of the story before the story's done, or else we get pulled out of the moment instead of reliving it with you. And then number 3, we're gonna use some dialogue. The speaker tells us that her mom's voice was panicked. Then she tells us what her mom told us. Instead of letting her mom's voice actually come alive and show us that she was panicked. When we hear dialogue, it brings the moment alive in a more powerful and tangible way, and it triggers the mirror neurons in the brain and allows us to see and hear the story almost as if we're there ourselves. So knowing all of this, let's implement some of the changes and see the difference. Please note, there are a million ways to do this, and here's one. So let's review the before. I'll never forget the feeling of hearing my phone buzzing at 3:37 AM on the 20th of October, 2012. This was another turning point, but one that I never saw coming, one that began with my mom's panicked voice telling me, "Your sister's been in a serious accident." and to pray to God that she would survive. So here is an after option: It was the 20th of October, 2012. At 3:37 AM, my phone started buzzing. It's never a good thing when you hear your phone buzz at 3 in the morning. Blurry-eyed, I reached across my bed grasping for the phone, knocking 3 things off my nightstand. I flipped on my light and sat up, squinting from the brightness. I finally grabbed my phone and saw it was my mom. Oh no! This allows us to feel the feeling rather than the speaker just telling us the feeling. It was like everything zoomed into focus. My adrenaline started to kick in. I could hear my heart suddenly pounding. It's never a good thing when someone calls at 3 in the morning. I hit the button to talk. And heard panic in my mom's voice. "Your sister's been in a serious accident," she said. "Pray to God that she survives." Do you see how those little tweaks from a narrative perspective change the action and our relationship with it? It comes alive. I can hear the speaker's mom in a different way. She shifted from talking about what her mom said to simply saying what her mom said. You also get a sense of the stomach drop moment as the speaker describes how she was grasping for the phone. Some of that language helps us see the story and really envision what was happening. It's essentially the same moment from the before version, but it's coming to life in a different way. And it's not all that much longer. However, taking the time to establish the character, the scene, and the step-by-step action allows us a chance to be with the speaker in that moment. Okay, so let's be clear about what's different in the after version. We slowed the story down, made the intentional choices to help set up the scene and establish the character. We made the story about one specific moment, not about what generally happened, and because of that, the story became more visual. We added a moment of dialogue that brought a character to life and the story to life. Instead of telling us about her feelings, the speaker simply felt and expressed them. It became a shared and relived experience. Now, even if we took this list of what's different and did it again, we could create a slightly different story with different elements and moments highlighted. There are so many things we could do in the process of playing with the structure of story to engage and pull people into the moment. This is where you can experiment, share, iterate, and then try again, each time getting clearer and more masterful in your story creation. Sally's structure element number 2: meaning, aka connecting to the audience, making your specific story universal. Once you have your moment created and have earned their rapt attention, it's time to create the meaning for your audience. One of the key strategies for this is to take the specifics of your moment and find the universal theme that connects your story to everyone's story. In other words, it connects you to an audience of people who have not lived your life. They haven't had the same experiences you've had. So how do we do that? Any story can be made universal because every story has a universal human experience in it, even if the details and circumstances are specific and may be very different from an experience the audience has had. If we lift the hood that's hiding our stories, we can find what I call the universal emotive truth. This is where knowing your audience and all of their preconceived ideas can be helpful in finding the places where your experiences might meet. Knowing what ideas they have when they walk in the room—ideas about you, ideas about your topic, and any misconceptions—is helpful fodder for you. Now you have a chance to shape their meaning, understanding, and connection to what you're talking about by experiencing that universal truth with them. So ask yourself, what's the most universal feeling that is underneath the circumstances and experiences of the story? Here are some examples of this answer based on stories I've shared so far in this book: The Universal Emotive Truth in my scuba diving story is fear. I was afraid of this new thing that I'd never done before. The Universal Emotive Truth in my story about John back in Chapter 1 is rejection and loneliness. He felt left out and excluded. The universal emotive truth in Tanya's struggle, Chapter 9, is self-doubt. She wasn't sure she could really make good on her speaking dreams and become what she wanted to be. My scuba diving story isn't really about scuba diving. It's about fear. So when other people hear and experience my story, they recognize that emotion and think about moments from their own life when they've felt harrowing panic about something they've never done before. John's story about rejection and loneliness wasn't really about John, his school, or the other students. It was about that universal experience of feeling left out and wondering if anyone really cared. It was about belonging and not belonging. When an audience hears that story, they will think about times in their life when they felt the sting of exclusion and remember that pain. Once they do, then together we can change that experience in the future. Tanya's story wasn't really about whether she could become a speaker. It was about her willingness to get vulnerable and step out of the protection of her intellect and expertise. How many times have we all hidden from the more powerful and needed stories because we weren't sure if they were worthy or needed, or because we were afraid of what others might think or how they might react to them? We want people to feel these stories by tapping into the universal emotive experience in them, which connects our disparate lives and stories together. We are reminded that we're living a shared human experience, as different as we all might be. That is powerful all on its own, but it's also an essential first step in persuasion. Because it makes the harm and impact more real. A pro tip for you: once you've identified a universal emotive truth, you need to reveal that emotion through the story. Don't say something like, "The universal theme of this story is blah blah blah." We need to feel with you, not be told how to feel. The universal emotive truth needs to be made clear through the story. It's your job to go to the audience. Once you know what your universal emotive truth is, and before you can tell people what they need to do with your story, the audience needs to understand why they should care about the story and what it has to do with them. This is your chance to create meaning and shape the audience's thinking and perspective. You've just had a shared experience where they were feeling with you, and where you lit up a part of their brain so they could feel a similar feeling while tapping into their own experiences and stories. So what are you gonna do with that moment? It's your job to go to the audience, not to wait for them to come to you. If you don't make the effort to connect your experience to theirs in creating new and different shared understanding, your story is a vanity exercise. This isn't about you thinking, "I'm up here doing this thing and you come to me and figure it out." No, it's your job to step into the audience first, metaphorically speaking, of course. And when you can do that, the audience will understand and think, "Oh, I see why this is important. You not only understand me, you're also leading me and I will follow you." Sally Koering Zimney's structure element number 3, Move. In other words, what's next? We are on to the final part of the structure: What do we want the audience to do next? That's a really important question. In speech circles, we sometimes call this section commentary. It moves beyond simply defining the connecting point for your audience and ensuring they feel connected to what you're talking about. Here is where you bring in your leadership perspective and where you lead the audience to a new way of thinking, being, and doing. When I was trained as a speaker, I was lucky enough to be taught by some of the best coaches in the country. Pam, Katie Wyckoff, and Joe Wyckoff created a methodology of persuasive speaking that has won their schools, including mine, numerous national awards based on their approach. Unsurprisingly, when I went to grad school to study persuasion, their approach mirrored the persuasive theories that exist and what I had seen work practically speaking in my years of speaking to teenagers and then to adult audiences as both a speaker and a coach. In the Wyckoff's approach, they would often call this part of the talk or the story the "just talk." It was a chance to really sink into your own perspective, commentary, and ideas, and to articulate why this really matters, not just to the audience, but to you personally, to all of us. This section taps into something aspirational. It's not a rant, though it is a moment to let your passion fly a bit. Let's see your real feelings. Now, why is this so important? This is the part of the story where you're speaking from the heart. We used to say, "Just talk from the heart." This involves perspective, leadership, passion, and insight: "This is the way forward, and this is why." Listen, not all of the moments we are bringing to life need that kind of passion and drama, I realize. But this is the moment when what's at stake, why it matters, and what we need to do now must be crystal clear. And when a speaker does the Move section of this framework well, it's a telltale sign of a powerful, impactful, leader. SPARKS Part 4: How to Create Your Leadership Story Summary. In Part 4, we looked at how to craft a persuasive story by deconstructing stories and looking at what makes a good and powerful story. We started by clarifying the idea behind your story so that your point is clear, then identifying some of the key characteristics We learned a powerful formula for ensuring that your story resonates with the specific context, aka the Sassy Analysis, and the learned dynamics you can play with as a speaker to make your story more effective and moving. And finally, we walked through the specific craft and plot elements of a persuasive story: moment, meaning, and move. Exercises: Reflection questions before you start crafting your story. What is your universal emotive theme, and what does it have to do with your audience? Why should your audience care? What's at stake for the audience if they don't take your idea on and integrate it into their lives? How to craft Your Story. If you're ready to craft your story and you wanna follow a process, try this simplified approach. Keep in mind that the creative genius often doesn't work with our timeline, so be patient with yourself. The most important thing you can do is to keep taking baby steps. They will still get you there. Step 1, draft your story. Don't overthink it. Your goal is to get something down on paper, even if it sucks and you hate it. And you probably will hate it. If you hate writing, do it via voice memo, whatever you need to do to have something to work off of. And once you've drafted your story, if you think it's not quite done, that's okay. Step 2, walk away from your story for 24 hours. After you create, it's often best to step back and give a little time for your creation to sit before you continue working on it. Oftentimes after I step away from a story for 24 hours, I come back with the next layer of complexity, interest, or ideas. It also creates discipline to not create at the last minute so that you miss out on the perspective you can bring if you have the time to walk away and come back. Step 3, come back for the second draft. Importantly, stop when this draft is 80% done because it's never done. And it cannot actually get quote unquote "done" until it's being spoken out loud in front of other people. So save yourself the time you'll put in to get it from what you think is 80% to what you think is 100%. You'll do it more efficiently by fast-forwarding to step 4 once you're at 80%. Step 4: Share your story with a loving audience. Share it with a colleague, a friend, your loved ones, your spouse, even a pet. Go for it. Keep in mind, though, that this sharing exercise is more about you sharing your story than about getting other people's feedback. The goal is to say it out loud, in your body, ideally not sitting down, with an audience so that it elevates your practicing to the next level. The audience's main job is to simply be there. Step 5: Iterate. Whether or not you ask for feedback—and be careful about who you ask for feedback from and what you really want to hear—you learned something by doing this exercise. What did you learn? What did your body tell you? What new ideas came to you? What worked? What didn't? This is the process: tell it, iterate, tell it again, iterate again. Welcome to the constant and ever-evolving art of speaking your story. Tools and resources. Head over to the Speaking Story Toolkit and grab your copy of the Speaking Story Plot Worksheet so you can craft your powerful and persuasive story. While you're there, you can also grab a copy of the Assess Your Story Checklist to ensure your story is hitting on the key elements of a persuasive story. You can do all this at speakingstory.com. Assess your story checklist. Here is a checklist that will help you assess the story you've identified. No story has it all, and all stories can be adjusted. There are levers we can adjust in all stories to make them better, but this list will give you a good sense of where yours is at. Is your story specific? Focused on one moment? In other words, not generic or a summary. Igniting the visual imagination? Creating connection. Resonating. Breaking through the audience wall. Humanizing your idea. Well-crafted, well-edited. Showing different levels. Using dialogue. Using the past tense or the present tense. Revealing harm or possibility. Sharing what's at stake and why it matters. Bringing the audience to a significant moment. You can get these tools and all the other resources at speakingstory.com. That's the end of this chapter of Speaking Story. If you want to keep listening ad-free, you can find the full audiobook on Audible, or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts or on YouTube. And if this chapter stirred something in you, if it, shall we say, moved you, let me suggest that you start with the Unspeaker Simple Storytelling audio mini-course at sally-zimney.com/unspeaker. All right, movers. This moved me. What? Is moving you. See you next time.