Practice Speech: My Favorite Story
Level: Awareness, Novice, Intermediate
Time Limit: 90 seconds
Audience: You are at dinner with a group of friends and/or family. Someone references an event and you have the perfect story to augment the conversation.
Instructions:
1. Choose a story you love! What’s your favorite story? Why do you like it?
2. Consider your audience.
3. Identify the reason for sharing. What is the moral of the story?
4. Write the story. Include vivid details: who, what, where, when, how and why. Find the right amount, not too much, not too little. Be sure you include a hook, emphasize the conflict, and conclude with impact. Be vulnerable open up about your experience.
5. Practice speaking the story. Tell it often.
Purpose: Examine your stories; rewrite the script if necessary. Practice your ability to speak about yourself personally. Practice the art of telling a story.
Skills to practice: DP2: Project, DP5: Pause, DP6: Engage, DP9: Dance.
Resources:
Harvard Business Review: How to Tell a Great Story
Example: Sorry, this is your story! It just doesn’t work if you tell somebody else’s.