Recipe for a Compelling Backstory

Storytelling

Sep 21

If you want to tell a powerful story, you can’t forget these three things (and a special ingredient).

Simple Story Arc:

(1) Beginning: Relatable likable hero in their ordinary world
(2) Middle: Hero encounters roadblocks, challenges, obstacles
(3) Ending: Hero makes it to the other side, changed

The special ingredient is high stakes. A story misses if it doesn’t have tension.

Do you cheer for Rocky if he wins every boxing match on the way to winning the title?

Are you on the edge of your seat if Katniss enters the arena, kills Peeta and waltzes her way to an easy win?

Think about what happens in the middle. Maybe it feels like a mess, but it’s actually magic.

The stakes have to be high if you want people to cheer for you. And that’s exactly what fans do.

So whether you are telling a story about your client / prospect as the hero - or your own backstory as their guide - own the middle with some realness. Be relatable. Don’t smooth the edges or bury the struggles.

Stacy Havener

Blue-collar girl from the Berkshires who combined a lot of grit with a little glitter to become a successful female entrepreneur in the investment world. Founder of Havener Capital, raising capital ($8B and counting), stomping glass ceilings, and shaking things up.