Storytelling

I’m reading Storyworthy because I want to get better at telling stories.

Stories are integral to being human. All communication is telling some kind of story. Stories are a way to convey information to others and pass on knowledge to future generations. It’s what has made us good at surviving, learning from others’ mistakes, and entertaining ourselves.

I notice when other people tell stories about themselves, even about mundane things that I don’t care about, I’m more likely to pay attention.

I don’t think telling stories about myself would be that interesting to others. But this isn’t true. We’re wired to engage with stories. Maybe I don’t like to be in the spotlight, where my imperfections are on display. But this makes others relate to me easier.

I want to be interesting to others. So I’m trying to improve my story telling skills. I can use these ship its as a place to practice. There’s always a story I can tell.

One of the exercises in the Storyworthy book is called Homework for Life. At the end of the day, journal 1-2 sentences of a possible story from the day. I’ve been doing this since the end of January. Not all of the entries will be story worthy. But even after a couple months, it’s a good source to draw from.