The Secret To Storytelling? HINT: It’s Not About You.

Telling your story is a powerful way to build your network because it allows you to connect with people on a deeper, more memorable level. But few do it correctly.

Mike Marcellus

Mar 29, 2025

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Everyone has a story to tell.

Our stories can offer comfort, hope, and inspiration, helping us cope with difficult situations.

We enrich each other's lives by sharing our diverse experiences and insights.

And by sharing our story, we can create a deeper connection with others.

But a great story is not about you.

It’s about your reader.

Many writers, especially when starting out, tend to focus on their own experiences, feelings, or ideas. While personal stories can be powerful, they only resonate if they connect with the reader.

A great story is one that engages, captivates, and resonates with the audience. It creates a bridge between the writer and the reader.

We achieve this through a streamlined framework, strategic techniques, and finding the magic that resonates with the audience.

Once we take these steps, we unlock the power of storytelling.

🖼️ FRAMEWORKS IN STORYTELLING

A storytelling framework is essentially a structured approach to crafting narratives.

It provides a blueprint, a set of guidelines, that helps storytellers organize their thoughts and create compelling stories that resonate with their audience.

“We are all storytellers. We all live in a network of stories. There isn’t a stronger connection between people than storytelling.”
- Jimmy Neil Smith

There's a diverse landscape of storytelling frameworks.

For example, I find Chase Dimind's 6-Step Story-Based Framework, shared on LinkedIn, to be exceptionally effective for sales and marketing:

🧑‍🎨 TECHNIQUES FOR STORYTELLING

Storytelling techniques are crucial because they transform raw information or experiences into engaging, memorable, and impactful narratives.

“Storytelling is the most powerful way to put ideas into the world.”
– Robert McKee

In simplest terms, the techniques used for good storytelling involve:

Location - Where are you?
Actions - What are you doing in that moment of the story?
Thoughts - What are you thinking?
Emotions - What are you feeling?
Conversations - What are you hearing?

Strategic techniques like building suspense, creating intriguing characters, and using vivid descriptions draw the audience in and hold their attention.

Effective storytelling techniques, regardless of approach, should engage, connect, and influence your audience.

🧙 THE MAGIC OF STORYTELLING

Well-crafted narratives possess an almost mystical ability to captivate, influence, and connect with audiences.

"People do not buy goods and services, they buy relationships, stories, and magic"
- Seth Godin

Nicolas Cole, one of the most-read writers on the Internet, recently argued on LinkedIn that Game of Thrones success stemmed from its powerful storytelling and its compelling narrative:

Great storytelling creates a powerful illusion of experience. It engages our brains and emotions in a way that mere facts or data cannot.

We tend to "see," "hear," or "feel" the events being described, creating a vivid and immersive experience.

💪 THE POWER OF STORYTELLING

The popular show, Survivor, this week reminded me how impactful stories can be, showing an autistic contestant struggling with an “episode” she had during a challenge.

Despite the competition, in a moment of humanity, a rival team member helped her to calm down with breathing exercises and a hug.

As a parent of a child with a disability, I felt an immediate and deep connection.

Her journey began by having the courage to tell her story …