The news that the Walt Disney Co.’s Ralph Breaks the Internet was No. 1 film at the box office over the extended 2018 Thanksgiving weekend just proves that humans are hardwired for a great story.
The animated sequel generated $84.5 million in theaters in the U.S. and Canada for the five-day holiday weekend, according to Comscore Inc. Ticket revenue beat its Box Office Mojo forecast of $71.8 million for the five-day holiday. For full disclosure, I own a tiny amount of Disney stock because I am such a fan of the studio’s storytelling prowess. (By the way, the scenes with the Disney princesses are priceless.)
So what is your client-attracting defining story?
A tough challenge for many is convincing enough prospects to hire them. To become more persuasive, it pays to know how humans are hardwired for stories. If you want prospects to think it over, give them lots of facts and figures. If you want them to decide to hire you, tell them the right story: Your Defining Story.
Storytelling helps persuade on an emotional level. Maybe that is why so many Fortune 500 companies are hiring storytelling experts to teach their sales and business development professionals to tell relatable stories that will convince prospects.
Professionals, consultants, business leaders, speakers, and authors need to know the proper methods of telling a persuasive story. As my buddy Michael Hauge, a screenwriting teacher and story consultant to Hollywood filmmakers like Will Smith, says: “The story must be true, but it does not have to be factual.” In other words, some literary license is allowed to condense the story down to its essence.
First, learn the basics of telling a client success story. Then apply those basics to crafting Your Defining Story.
Any story worth telling is worth telling poorly. That is, to start. Practice, practice, practice telling your stories to improve them. Especially the defining story of you.
Always remember that people are mentally hardwired for stories. Many fields of science testify to this truth. Nothing is as persuasive as storytelling with a purpose, and you should study the techniques of telling a great story employed by Hollywood, Madison Avenue and Wall Street.
Every story needs a hero (think main character), a nemesis, and a mentor. If you are familiar with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the main character would be Dorothy Gale of Kansas, the nemesis is the Wicked Witch of the West, and the mentor is Glinda the Good Witch. By the way, if I were to write the plot summary for this book and movie it would be: “Girl arrives in strange land and kills. Makes three friends and kills again.” Some call it the ultimate chick flick: two women fighting over a pair of shoes.
If the first Star Wars movie are more your cup of tea, then we are talking about Luke Skywalker as the main character, Darth Vader as the nemesis, and Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and then Jedi Master Yoda as the mentors. My favorite mentor advice from Yoda is: “Do or do not. There is no try.”
So, don’t try to craft Your Defining Story: do or do not. If you do, the payoffs can be huge. You don’t have to break the Internet to succeed. Just convince your share of prospects.
