The moral of your story

Each decision you made along this story journey revealed a personal insight. 

Your expertise and presentation skills mean you get lots of great opportunities to stand up in front of your audience. You are able to hold your own and often receive compliments on your presentations. After all, you’re smart and skilled.

Still, you feel anxious or nervous about your speaking skills. To top if off, you have a big event coming up and need to craft a story for it ASAP! You’re ready to up-level your speaking skills.

Here are 5 customized recommendations based on what might be holding YOU back:

1. Mindset

When you get up to speak in front of a crowd, you sometimes feel nervous. Maybe your heart starts to race or your palms feel sweaty. This might stop you from stepping onto the stage or speaking on a podcast.  Developing your own pre-performance ritual will help you feel grounded and harness the power of your nerves. After all, your nerves are there to serve you.

PATH TO TRY: Deep breathing triggers a relaxation response. My favourite breathing exercise is called 4-7-8. Inhale for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7 seconds and exhale for 8 seconds.  

2. Core 7 Stories for Business

You might think you don’t have any stories to tell or you’re not sure what parts of your life are story-worthy. Crafting your Core 7 Stories for Business will build your story crafting skills and help you clarify your messaging. You will have a story for every occasion. Most importantly, crafting your Core 7 Stories will show you the many ways your story matters.

PATH TO TRY: Grab my FREE Core 7 Stories for Business guidebook and start crafting your stories!

3. Story Crafting

You know your message. You know your audience. You’re ready to step onto the stage—but wait! You still need to find the perfect story. The story that will amplify your message and make it stick. Learning to craft stories is like learning to ride a bike – you only have to do it once. Imagine having those skills in place. Craft a story for your next event or video and then when the next one comes: rinse and repeat. Stories forever and ever amen.

PATH TO TRY: Two of the keys to amazing stories are images and emotions. As you think about the next story you want to tell, write down the images and feelings that come to your mind.

4. Vulnerability

You want to create meaningful connections with your audience and to represent yourself authentically. Still, there is a voice in the back of your mind that warns against saying the wrong thing, going off-brand and offending someone. It’s true, there is value in vulnerability and it has a function in storytelling. The key is in your intention. Combining vulnerability with ethics and purpose is how you show respect to yourself and your audience and this is where meaningful connections are made.

PATH TO TRY: Maximize the value of your next performance opportunity by answering the following questions:

  1. Who will this offend?
  2. How do I feel about offending this person/group?
  3. Will they be offended for a meaningful reason?

5. Story Strategy

You’re at a level where cookie cutter approaches to solving these problems won’t do the trick. You don’t have the time to waste. What you really need is expert, one-on-one attention and a bespoke strategy for the specific purpose you have upcoming.

PATH TO TRY: Expert instruction on storycrafting, storytelling, brand messaging, performance, or all of the above: your personalized “Story Strategy” 1:1 with Jilliane. Our time together can be exactly what you need it to be.

Get Your Story Strategy