Page 278 - ConvinceThemFlip

convince them in 90 seconds or less
EXERCISE
Story Time
It’s time to tell some stories. Start by figuring out the key
point you want to make and the message you want your
listeners to come away with. Once you know your point,
you can start pondering your hook. Your hook is anything
that arouses your audience’s interest and makes them
want to know what happens next. The best hooks ask a
question (overtly or by implication), introduce a character,
introduce the dilemma and/or build anticipation for
what’s to come.
The most moving stories come from personal
experience because they are real and you are standing
right there telling them. Your audience will have the
advantage of reading the hidden codes in your body
language as you tell your story.
Find someone you’re comfortable with—your spouse
or a friend or family member—and tell him or her stories
about the following topics:
1. A challenge you overcame at work.
2. A success you had at home.
Be sure to include the point, along with the “who,”
“where,” “when,” and the problem in the beginning, lay
out the attempts to solve it in the middle, and offer the
solution in the ending. Then figure out what you learned
from the experience—the moral of your story.
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