Discovering How to Tell Your Unique Signature Stories Will
Make You Much More Engaging and Influential
Have you ever been in the audience listening to a presentation and found yourself totally engaged and connected to that speaker? And you find yourself wishing you could make an equally strong connection to your audience?
What is their secret? I bet they figured out how to be a master storyteller!
Even though storytelling goes back tens of thousands of years, it doesn’t necessarily come automatically. Based on many years in the trenches, I know there are key techniques to use for optimal engagement.
I promise you this is a skill you can learn and master.
You know what I find? We are so close to our own lives that it can be hard to determine which key events in our lives to weave into the powerful stories which, crafted in the right manner, will make you memorable to your clients and audiences.
I can help you tell your signature stories.
So, what are signature stories? They are stories that are so powerful and well crafted they make an immediate connection with listeners. They can help you get invited to be a paid keynote speaker. They can persuade listeners to consider you as a thought-leader. They can help you close that sale.
It’s about becoming more memorable by making that crucial human-to-human connection.
Imagine what your life and business would look like with more meaningful relationships, greater credibility, more recognition and influence and, frankly, more sales. Discovering how to use the power of storytelling can make all that happen.
It is my heart-felt belief that your own real-life stories are the most valuable communications tool you have. They have the power to influence people and make the world a much better place.
Why do I call stories a fail-safe way to communicate? Well, people remember stories more than facts. Our primal brains are wired to interpret the world through stories.
Data is not enough. You need to learn how to use stories to make an emotional connection.
When you figure out which stories to tell and how to tell them in the most compelling way, this is the quickest path to go from being a good speaker to a GREAT speaker.
YOU CAN USE Signature STORIES WHEN YOU:
- Make an important presentation at a meeting.
- Explain to leaders and key stakeholders what you do and why it matters.
- Want to be more relatable and really connect to others.
- Look to stand out from the crowd
- Are going to make a speech or offer a workshop to a live audience
- Want to close a sale
- Pitch a potential funder
- Have a message you want to get out to the world.
- Want to be a memorable guest when you do media interviews.
- Need to diffuse a tense conversation.
- Want engaging content for your website, internet marketing and social media.
- Want to stand out at conferences, associations and networking events.
- Want to influence someone to change their mind.
- Desire to inspire and motivate others.
- Yearn to leave a legacy, passing on your own experiences to future generations.
- Want to be more authentic.
- Want to motivate others to take action.
- Are going for a TED or TEDx talk.
I’ve helped 500+clients develop their Signature Stories.
Here’s the story of how I helped Aviva develop her first Signature Story. The first time she tried it she doubled her book sales and got her first standing ovation!
Click Here to Read Aviva's Story
AVIVA’S STORY
Aviva Goldfarb is an attractive forty-something mom-turned-business owner whose mission is to help bring families back around the dinner table by providing them easy to prepare healthy meals. She’s the founder of The Six O’Clock Scramble and has been featured in the New York Times, The Today Show and other major media outlets.
A few years ago, Aviva contacted me asking for help. Her new book had just hit the streets and she was already doing a lot of speaking to promote both the book and her online family dinner planner for busy parents. Aviva is one of those special people who are always looking for ways to take things to the next level, to be her best and to look for efficient shortcuts. She is one of the most positive people I’ve met.
“Geoffrey, I already do a lot of speaking and I know people like what I teach, but sometimes I can tell they aren’t connecting with me as much I want them to, and I’m worried it’s affecting product sales. Do you have any ideas what I can do from the stage to make me more relatable to my audience?”
Knowing how properly crafted and told stories powerfully influence our audiences, I worked with Aviva to craft what I call “The Why I Do What I Do” story.
First, I asked her about her mission.
“I want to get families back around the dinner table.”
“Why?”
“Um…well, nobody has time anymore to prepare a healthy meal.”
“Why? Why does this matter in the big scheme of things? People have busy lives…so what? Tell me about your own upbringing.”
Turns out that Aviva didn’t have the easiest childhood. We continued to search for her “why.”
Suddenly, she recalled that the only time when she and her parents really connected with each other was (yep, you guessed it) over dinner. The dinner hour represented some of Aviva’s happiest childhood memories but until just now she hadn’t made this connection…she was so focused on growing her business she hadn’t taken the time to think about her own story behind it.
“Aviva, could it be that the work you do now is directly tied to bringing back the best of what you experienced as a child?”
Long pause. Then, through some tears she said, “Oh my God…of course…why didn’t I realize that on my own?!”
(We are all so close to our lives that we often don’t realize we have powerful stories to tell. That’s why you need a story coach.)
I showed her how to craft this “ah-ha!” into a memorable Signature Story, then we practiced it in preparation for the speech she was about to give soon after our time together.
A few weeks later I walked into my office and noticed the red blinking light on my desk phone, indicating a voicemail message had been left overnight.
“Geoffrey! I just gave the same presentation I’ve given for a while now but this time started it with the story you and I worked on. It was incredible! I instantly sold twice as many books and got my first standing ovation. After I finished people rushed up to me saying ‘I loved your story!’“
Aviva was the first business owner I worked with to develop one of her Signature Stories. By now, I’ve helped hundreds develop their stores – time and again they call me having experienced the same kinds of results and reactions.
Remember – You could be one story away from getting anything you want!
You may be just one story away from building that more meaningful relationship, influencing that change, hitting that goal, getting more sales, convincing that funder, receiving that standing ovation…
I Look Forward to Working With You!
“I was hired by a Fortune 25 company to deliver a keynote for their flagship clients. Commanding a significant speaking fee and knowing substantial follow-on consulting business was at stake, I hired Geoffrey Berwind to help elevate me to a super-elite level.
After Geoffrey worked with me, the speech became an engaging, experiential event for the audience. It felt like I had a Hollywood-class director and screenplay writer all in one.
My client rushed to me after the event and told me that I nailed the presentation and that she knew it would lead to significant follow-on business for her company. Speaking of follow-on business, I signed every dollar of follow-on consulting business that I had anticipated. Geoffrey is THE maestro of storytelling!”
LauraBerger
“The powerful presentation skills I’ve learned from Geoffrey Berwind have helped me make huge leaps forward in my speeches, teleseminars, interviews, and writing. The strategies he teaches helped me bring in an additional $200,000 in business in one year. If you want to make big money by just changing a few things in your speech or interview, then get Geoffrey to coach you today! I give him my highest recommendation!”
Steve Harrison
“I have been in front of major audiences for years, but working with Geoffrey Berwind on one of my signature stories showed me that I was missing key elements on how to tell my story most effectively and now I see the power of having a personal coach for my presentations. When I put into practice what Geoffrey taught me I gave the best speech of my career!”
Denise Winston.