Great Leaders Are Storytellers: How To Craft Great Stories | Jesse Lyn Stoner

Stories are more than just tall tales or campfire yarns.

They include discussions of the enterprise in the future tense. They can inspire, instruct and invite.

Establish the setting or scene.

Ask yourself:
- What do I want my associates to feel?
- How can I nurture a sense of adventure, mystery, suspense, joy or invitation?
- Will my associates be able to visualize the scene I have in my mind?

Create a dilemma with proper tension or dissonance with which associates can identify, then using one sentence, describe the challenge for each of the key characters.

Questions to help you create dissonance:

- How can I build a sense of concern, conflict, or suspense?

- Will my associates be able to visualize the challenge the same way I do?

- Will the dilemma create enough dissonance associates will desire a resolution?

The climax is a resolution used as a tool for insight and should clearly fit the challenge and carry the associates to new and unexpected directions.

Ask yourself:

- Will the ending surprise, amuse, inspire, challenge, or amaze my associates?
- Will associates view the ending as relevant and important?
- Will associates gain new attitudes, understandings, or skills from the resolution?

• Use a lot of details at the beginning of the story and then faze them out.
• Timing is key to good storytelling.
• Practice by recording your story and listening for places pauses might add punch.
• Use different gestures, varied facial expressions, and dramatic body movements. 
• Stay focused and stick to the storyline.