Feel, Know, & Do: Crafting Stories That Connect and Inspire

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In this episode, Mary shares expert advice and actionable tips to create powerful stories that inspire hearts and minds. 

She discusses the StorySpire™ process, emphasizing the importance of understanding your audience and their needs. Mary breaks down the three crucial components of impactful storytelling: what you want your audience to feel, know, and do. 

 From handling various audience types to creating compelling calls to action, Mary provides practical frameworks and examples. 

Subscribe, join her email list, and let your stories change the world.

00:00 Introduction to StorySpire™ Podcast

00:20 Join the Story Spire Newsletter

00:57 Understanding Your Audience

01:48 Crafting the Right Story

03:29 The Importance of Emotions in Storytelling

05:35 Incorporating Facts and Figures

07:35 The Call to Action

12:25 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

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Thanks for joining us on the StorySpire podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a rating and review to help us reach even more speakers like you.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Welcome to the Storiespirepodcast.
I'm Mary R.
Snyder.
I am your host and storytellingstrategist.
I'm here with expert advice,actionable tips, and frameworks
to create the stories that willinspire hearts and minds because
stories change the world.
Let's get into it.

(00:20):
Hey, before we get started, Iwant to remind you of something.
Have you said yes to my email,my newsletter, the Story Spire
News?
It is a weekly newsletter with alink to one of the episodes, the
episode of the week, along witha storytelling tip, maybe
something fun, a resource Ifound, or an inspirational story

(00:45):
just to brighten up your emailbox.
And you can do that simply bygoing to storyspire.
com and clicking on Join Mary.
I'd love for you to join methere.
Let's get into it.
Hi there.
Let's talk about the story spireprocess.
We start at the end I want youto think of these three things

(01:08):
after you've been on a stage.
Maybe you sat across fromsomeone at a table or you've
shared in a small room or infront of thousands.
What do you want?
The people who just heard you tofeel?
What do you want them to knowand what do you want them to do?

(01:28):
Now, I know you're thinking, Idon't even know what my story is
yet.
That's okay, because this is howyou build the most effective and
the most impactful story.
For the right audience.
And this is what I always say.
It's telling the right story tothe right people at the right
time.
Think about this.

(01:49):
Would you stand in front of abunch of brand new parents?
They just brought those preciousdarling babies home in the last
few months.
And would you tell them aboutthe joys of the empty nests?
Well, no, because it hasabsolutely no bearing on these

(02:12):
people's lives right now.
They're not interested in that.
They're not remotely caringabout an empty nest.
They are so excited about thisnew journey they're on.
Now you could tell that samestory to a group of people who
just sent their kids off tocollege.
They might lean in a little andgo, oh, okay, so I'm not always

(02:35):
going to be sad, right?
You see the difference in theway that story hits?
The same thing is you would notstand in front of a group of
people who just lost their homesin a tornado and tell them how
much you need their help to do aproject for a new library three

(02:55):
towns over.
That doesn't even make sense.
But I've seen it happen.
I know it sounds nuts.
Understanding your audience,understanding what you want them
to feel, understanding what youwant them to know and
understanding what you want themto do.
That informs the story that youwill tell them.

(03:20):
It informs the way you willbuild what you will share the
way in which you will formulatethe message you have for them.
So let's talk about the veryfirst thing.
What do you want someone to feelafter you step off the stage?
Now, the last thing I wantsomeone to feel is manipulated.
I also don't want them to feelmad that they showed up to hear

(03:41):
me talk.
I want people to feel inspiredand know they can do what they
are setting out to do.
And for me, when you finish thispodcast today, I want you to
feel like.
You know what?
I can do this.
I can be a great storyteller.

(04:02):
That's what I want you to feel.
What do you want your person tofeel with your story?
Maybe you're a speaker and youwant them to feel empowered.
You know what?
If she can do it, I can do it.
If she overcame all of that, Ican overcome this little thing.
If she made it through thatdiagnosis, I can make it through

(04:23):
this struggle at work.
Maybe you want them to know thatthey are valued.
Maybe you're speaking to a groupof employees.
Maybe you're speaking to yourteam and you want them to feel
valued and important.
So you're going to develop thestory to make sure that's what

(04:44):
they walk away with.
What do you want them to know?
I want you to know as astoryteller that you can build
the skills to tell powerfulstories.
And I want you to know one ofthe ways you can learn is by
listening to this podcast.
That's what I want you to know.

(05:06):
Now, if I'm a speaker, I mightwant you to know that the
journey that I went on with thisdiagnosis I got wasn't easy.
But I persevered.
If I'm telling a story and I'mencouraging you to join my work
at a non profit, I want you toknow that every dollar you give,

(05:30):
that 85 percent of that goesdirectly to the recipient.
So this is where when you aretelling a story, you want to get
into a little bit of the facts.
Now, you know, I always talkabout stories.
They need to be a story and wedon't want a bunch of facts and
figures, facts and figures.
Data and information.

(05:51):
That is a supporting role toyour story.
Think of it as the secondbanana, not the first.
They are the person that is thesecond actor.
They're not the lead in theshow, but they're back there.
They're singing harmony.
They're doing that second part.
So they do have a role becausethey want to give you a little

(06:12):
head knowledge and for aspeaker, it may be scripture
that, Proverbs 3, 5, and 6,trust in the Lord with all your
heart and lean not on your ownunderstanding.
And that is, I know that to betrue.
Because I want that out, it'sknowing, it's the knowledge part

(06:32):
of your message, so we've gotthe feeling part, we've talked
about how we want people tofeel, we want them to feel
valued, and you do that bytelling them how important you,
they are to you, and you do thatby showing them that they are
important, you tell a storyabout them, you talk about how
Joe shows up every morningbefore anyone gets there and

(06:53):
makes everyone coffee, And noone ever knows it's Joe, but you
do because you're the leader andyou're here when Joe shows up
we've talked about how you wantthem to feel what you want them
to know.
Now, here's.
The big part, what do you wantyour one person to do with this

(07:17):
knowledge?
What is the action you want themto take You can actually give
them the steps and we're goingto talk about that in an
upcoming episode.
How we land the plane.
But, let's talk about it righthere today in the doing part.
The doing is the action step.

(07:37):
This typically comes at the veryend of your story.
You've opened, you've told thisgreat story, you've walked them
through some informationalpieces so they understand how
you work.
Now, let's get into the doingpart.
Now, this is where I love if Iam working with a nonprofit.

(07:58):
This is the call to action.
This is the appeal.
This is the part wheremanipulation can come in, but we
won't let it.
I might say something like, for45 a month, you can change the
life of a child just likeSusanna.
See for 45 a month you bring hermedical attention.

(08:20):
Wow.
That's something we just takefor granted.
If you're sick, you go to thedoctor.
Not where she lives.
Number two she gets aneducation.
An education is something wetake for granted here in the
states.
It's something you have to payfor where Susanna lives.
And I go through every singlething that 45 will do.
And then I say, there arethousands of children, but today

(08:43):
I'm looking for 100 people Tosay yes to a child just like
Susanna and all you have to do,and this is where I give them
the steps.
It could be raise your hand andI'll hand you a packet.
It could be fill out this card.
It could be on your table.
There is a donation, a pledgecard.

(09:04):
I could say something like for400.
You can build a house just likethe one we built for Susanna's
family.
400.
And you can do that today.
You can fill out that pledgecard.
You can hit that QR code.
You can do either one of those.

(09:24):
Or it could be something likefor 400, you can build a house
just like the one we built forSusanna's family.
400.
That's all it takes.
I don't know about you, but webuilt our house for our an
outside house for our dogs.
And it was more than that.

(09:46):
Whatever the steps are, you aregiving them.
This is where you give it tothem.
This is the doing part.
Now, if you are bringing in aninspirational message or a
workshop message, and you wantthem to maybe join your email
list, or maybe even buy a courseor join a group, then you give
them the steps.

(10:07):
I like to give them something inreturn for their email.
I would love to give you my fivesteps to being a better
storyteller.
All you have to do is click thatQR code.
I want to help you today.
Now, if you want to, Have themdo something.
I love a challenge.

(10:28):
I love to challenge my audienceand I love to give them
something for the challenge.
So I want to give you five stepsto being a better storyteller
and then I need a commitmentfrom you before you get this.
I want you to promise me Thatyou will spend one hour next
week working on your story.
Can I get that promise?

(10:49):
All right.
All you have to do is scan thisQR code right here.
It will put you on my emaillist.
I don't send much out, just anemail once a week with a link to
a podcast episode and a funstory that I like to share.
We all need to brighten up ouremail boxes a little bit.
I told them what I wanted themto do, and then I gave them

(11:12):
something for doing it.
Now, if you're an inspirationalspeaker, it could be, I want to
challenge you to spend the nextfive days reciting these prayers
that I will be happy to give youin a download or they're back at
my book table.
The doing is the call to actionand every story has a call to

(11:34):
action.
It has an ending.
It has something you want me todo.
Because if you don't tell mewhat to do next.
I won't do anything now.
That's a sad truth, but I wantyou to think about that.
Think about somebody you heardspeak recently.
We're right in the midst of apolitical time and there are

(11:57):
campaigning going on left andright.
And what is the last thing thata candidate says?
I want you to go to the pollsand vote for me.
That's the doing.
The feeling is they are going totouch your feels with however
they stand.
The knowing is they're going togive you some statistics on
maybe how they voted or howtheir party stands.

(12:20):
And the doing is they tell youwhat to do.
Go to the polls.
So what is your feeling,knowing, and doing?
Because those three things arethe keys to creating great
stories.
Now, for a long time, I createdstories and told stories with

(12:42):
really, without really thinkingabout those things.
And the stories fell apart.
I would create a podcast and Ididn't know what I wanted you to
feel or know or do with thestory I was sharing.
I just was creating it.
And I would stop and think aboutit and think that doesn't bring

(13:03):
any value.
When I shifted and began to lookat everything under the story
spire framework, then it changedBefore I create any story, I
think about you.
What do I want you to feel?
What do I want you to know?
And what do I want you to do?

(13:25):
And today, I want you to feelthat you can be a great
storyteller.
I want you to know, That youneed to practice.
You need to get more assets,more resources.
You need to continue to listento this podcast.
Maybe we even need to worktogether.
And what I want you to do is Iwant you to sign up for my email

(13:47):
list.
I want you to subscribe to thispodcast and I want you to
continue to show up here becauseyou know what I know your story
will change the world.
I hope you have a great week.
I'll see you around.
And don't forget, I would love afive star rating.
If you're going to give meanything other than a five star,
can we get on the phone andchat?

(14:08):
I would love to get it up to afive star.
I'll see you around.
Have a great rest of your day.
Bye now.