Informal Storytelling Guide for Story-Listening Event

CHOOSE TRUE STORIES in which you are a main character.

BRING TWO STORIES:

1. Intro Story: (3 min.) We begin with quick intro stories. Choose a story showing something unique about you.

2. Your Story: (8-10 min.) Story and follow-up conversation are about 15 min.

PREPARATION: Think ahead about your stories. The telling is more enjoyable and the story is more effective for listeners. But no pressure intended. No perfection allowed. Choose:

1. Tell from MEMORY.

2. NOTES: organizes thoughts & helps memory. (recommended)

2. WRITE story to read.

END WITH LESSON: you learned in this story.

DEPTH: Go deep into one or a few events. Listeners get into your story with emotions, heart and mind. They will remember their experience in your story.

If you tell many events with a few sentences each, listeners only use their minds. They have to concentrate more and minds may wander.

EMOTIONS: We connect through emotions more than info. When you tell how you feel in your story, listeners feel their feelings and live your story with you.

If emotions overwhelm you, pause. Group sits quietly with you. No apology needed for deeply feeling your story. Listeners now feel it with you.

DETAILS: Your story comes alive with specific details sprinkled throughout. Think 5 senses: see, hear, feel, taste, smell.

DESCRIBE ACTIONS: Describe actions and resulting feelings or reactions of others. Avoid negative labels for people (including you).

SILENCE: A pause emphasizes a point or increases anticipation. If you stop to think, silence is better than rambling on. 

CONVERSATIONS: Telling brief conversations adds interest.

Effective storytellers may spend 50% of prep time on first and last sentences/paragraphs.

FIRST PARAGRAPH: Peak listener’s interest so they think: How will this work out? or I want to know about that. It helps if it connects with their life. Samples:

“How would you feel getting lost in the woods? The day I get lost, the missing trail is the least of my problems. My whole life is off the map.”

“Do you like being forced to go where you don’t want to go? I’m rather oppositional. So when I pray for God to lead me, I mostly go along kicking and screaming.”

LAST PARAGRAPH: Sum up lesson learned. You might also encourage the listeners with a takeaway for their life. Samples:

“So that’s how getting lost on a hike helped me find myself. When you feel lost inside, go get lost in nature and you just might find yourself.”

“That’s my story about God leading me where I don’t want to go, but where I need to be. If your life is on the wrong track, keep praying, changing and moving forward. You’ll end up where you’re supposed to be.”

Story-Listening Events with Friends are informal. This page has many ideas to help tell inspiring stories. But no pressure. Just tell it.

Friends accept your story as words tumble out. There is no evaluation of stories. Their focus is connecting with you by listening, empathizing and encouraging.