On this episode Ariel is joined by Melissa Reaves, an executive storytelling coach, to talk about how stories can change lives.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Human beings are story telling machines. Everyone tells stories and have done since the times we lived in caves. Dating stories, family stories, in business – vision stories and case stories/studies. What I try to do is help people become “mind movie makers” because someone who really studies this craft can really ignite a lot of emotions inside the listener’s head. Anyone can do it, but some of us have never been taught. I teach you how you can find your stories and then craft them so that they’re really well laid-out with a nice arc. There's tension, you have your “ah-ha” moments and the listener goes on a journey with you.
All you see over and over again in angel investment meetings is a slideshow with graphs and charts saying: “the problem”, and then more graphs and charts saying: “the Solution”. It’s not emotional, I can’t get excited about it. As an investor, there’s a science and an art to starting a company. What I started to realise was that if you start with the story of a person having the problem, you come in as the hero. I spend most of my day helping companies get ready to do their investor pitches to find that story.
Every story is a movie and we storyboard it like a movie, it has an opening scene and we title it, the second scene we title it, and the third scene etc. You know where you’re going so you’re not meandering or droning on and on and getting your audience frustrated and confused. These stories are well crafted but you want to tell them naturally, you don’t want to sound canned or be too big or too monotone. The way you use your voice, the way you use pausing, balancing seriousness with humour, senses – making sure that people can see it, taste it, touch it, smell it, feel it, those are deliberate choices by the presenter/storyteller.
I’m not a therapist, but I have found that the self-narrative that people hold can sometimes be healed during some of the sessions that I’ve worked on. I’ve seen some breakthroughs from clients on some moments, and these are business clients.
BEST MOMENTS
“If you start with an emotional story we’re hooked. You want them to remember the story, that’s why they’re imperative and the way you tell stories is an essential business skill.”
“I always try to find personal stories as well as business stories because people want to get to know the storyteller. Every story you tell needs to have ‘and this is what I walked away with and I’m giving to you’.”
“Your listeners need to relate to you, see the story, be entertained, educated and the key thing: Not bored.”
“Storytelling allows the listener to step into the shoes of someone else. With a really well told story, their hearts can open and they can think about maybe some of the self-narratives that were infused into their own heads growing up and maybe they weren’t so true.”
ABOUT THE GUEST
Melissa Reaves is a professional and award-winning storyteller and storytelling coach to executives. Her sales and marketing background includes more than 20 years in technology enterprise sales, as well as countless stage credits as a professional actor/improviser. This combination of sales, marketing, acting, writing, directing and producing storytelling shows, ultimately led her to found Story Fruition to help others find and tell their stories--with impact.
Melissa works with CEOs, Founders and Senior Executives to build their storytelling skills and enrich their leadership. Melissa is the Pitch Coach for Founders Live, Seattle University's Business Plan Competition, and has been invited to instruct storytelling for business narratives at conferences all over the United States.
Website: https://www.storytellwithmelissa.com
ABOUT THE HOST
Ariel is a Licensed Massage Therapist, Registered Clinical Hypnotherapist, Reiki Master, Empath and Psychic who has been involved in holistic healing since 1988. She is also an educator, speaker, author and mentor for empaths, spiritual seekers and medical professionals. To reach Ariel, go to www.arielhubbard.com, where you will be able to contact her directly. Please let her know you heard her on the podcast and the assistance you need or question you have.
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