Signature Story Framework and Story Discovery
Signature Story Framework
Situation
- Start with a specific, descriptive moment to instantly draw the audience into your story.
- Example: "It was 12:32 AM, sitting at my desk, knowing it was time for a change."
Resistance
- Describe the significant internal or external challenges you faced.
Desire
- Clarify what you wanted to change (internally and externally).
Decision
- Pinpoint the pivotal decision that initiated change.
Breakthrough
- Describe the victory or overarching win you experienced.
Epiphany
- Share the insight, revelation, or belief you adopted.
Importance
- Explain why understanding your story is crucial for the audience.
Example Signature Story
Situation
- Sitting at my desk, feeling unhopeful about my business, doubting myself after finishing my first online program.
- Few gigs lined up.
Desire
- Wanting to serve more people but feeling capped by my current business model.
Decision
- Deciding to ask permission to pitch my online program during a presentation.
- Calling up the decision maker and requesting to share the next steps in doing this particular online program.
Breakthrough
- Receiving Stripe notifications of online program sales during and after the presentation.
- Making 25 times the keynote fee from the presentation.
Epiphany
- Realizing there was a different way to do business and serve people.
Importance
- Learning to speak persuasively on leverage platforms allows you to serve more people, grow your business, and make more money.
Story Bank Activity
- A process to discover and utilize personal stories.
Identifying Stories
- Ask yourself these guiding questions.
Difficult or Challenging Moments
- Identify and write down the most difficult or challenging moments in your life.
- Good stories often emerge from these experiences, especially if resolved with a learning outcome.
Defining Moments
- What were some of the most defining moments in your life?
- Significant events (e.g., a boss's comment, leaving a job or relationship) that shaped your life.
Funny Moments
- One of the funniest moments in your life.
- Humorous anecdotes can also make engaging stories.
Adventurous Moments
- Recall adventurous moments (climbing, jumping, etc.) for potential stories.
Learning and Insight
- Identify the story, writing down the headline.
- Determine the learnings from the story. What insight or revelation did you have?
- Most stories contain between one to five learnings.
Epiphany and Belief
- What epiphany or belief do you want to transfer to your audience?
- Especially relevant when selling a program; align the story with the vehicle's value.
Discovering your Vehicle
- When did you discover the power of your vehicle?
- Share that story vulnerably (challenge to victory to revelation).
Actionable Steps
- Download the story worksheets.
- Identify three to five potential story moments.
- Reflect on the moment you discovered the power of the vehicle you're selling.
- Use the templates to outline your signature story.
- Integrate stories into your opening map and content.