S11 E7 Building Community Through Shared Stories

Episode Overview: In this heartfelt season finale, Maria Daniels wraps up her storytelling series by exploring the powerful role that shared stories play in building authentic communities. Maria reaffirms that life—and business—are about genuine connection, not just checking boxes or chasing numbers. Through candid reflections and personal anecdotes, she encourages listeners to embrace their own stories, chaos and all, as a force for bringing people together.

Key Takeaways:

• Connection Through Storytelling: Maria discusses how sharing our real, imperfect stories helps us feel less alone and fosters genuine connection with others.

• The Magic of Vulnerability: Being brave enough to be seen, flaws and all, is essential for forming strong community bonds.

• Celebrating Others: Building a thriving community means amplifying the stories of others, not just your own voice.

• Creating Safe Spaces: Maria emphasizes the importance of safe, supportive environments—like podcasts, groups, and social media—where people are free to share and be themselves.

• Your Story Matters: Everyone has a story worth telling, and sharing it just might be what someone else needs to hear.

Action Steps:

• Share your own story, no matter how messy or chaotic—your authenticity could inspire and connect with others.

• Consider being a guest on Successfully Chaotic! Visit https://www.successfullychaotic.com/be-a-guest to apply and share your journey.

Maria’s Final Message: Your story—messy, chaotic, beautiful—has true power to connect and heal. Embrace it, share it, and help create something extraordinary.

Listen to the full episode for more insights and Maria’s inspiring stories!

https://www.successfullychaotic.com/

 

Episode Transcript

(00:07):
Life is a winding road?
No telling where it goes?
Driving through days and nights?
Won't stop for traffic lights
And I, I really want to
know, really want to know?

(00:30):
If I let me
figure out where the road goes?
Even if I'm falling down? I will keep on searching for
my highs?
You can say I lost my mind? I will keep on holding my

(00:51):
head high? Even if the sky is
falling down.
Hey there. Welcome back to Successfully Chaotic. If you've
been following along, you know we have been diving into all things
storytelling, but today, we are wrapping it all up with the heart of

(01:12):
it all, building community through shared stories.
Look, life and business are not just about
checking boxes or hitting numbers. They're really about connection.
Real, messy human connection. And
the best way to foster that is through sharing your
story and sharing it unapologetically.

(01:34):
So go ahead and grab your coffee or your tea or your
cacao or whatever warm beverage that sets your
soul on fire. Go ahead and settle in and let's talk about how
your story can bring people together.
All right. You know, it is
easy to think storytelling is just for books and movies.

(01:56):
It is not. The truth of the
matter is how we make sense of the world is
through stories. When I started this podcast, I
literally did not have all the answers. Actually, I had very, very few answers,
and I still don't have all the answers. But what I did
have was a story and a willingness to share.

(02:18):
The moment that I started talking about the chaos of
juggling kids, a kid on the spectrum, a
business, a life, people reached out saying,
wow, I thought it was just me, because that's the magic of
storytelling. It reminds us that we're not alone. And that
has been my goal from day one, is to

(02:40):
share things that you can do, things that I've learned along the way, but
also to share those messy middles, because those are
so connecting, and it makes people feel like they're not the
only person going through those things. And your story doesn't have to
be perfect or polished. It just has to be real. Because when
you share your truth, you open the door for others to do

(03:02):
the same. And that, my friends, is how communities are built.
Before we go deeper, let's take a quick walk down
memory lane, because in this series, we've talked about techniques
for engaging storytelling, and we unpacked how to grab attention and
keep the the attention with your stories. We also talked about
storytelling and healing, and we explored how sharing

(03:25):
our struggles can heal not just us, but those that
hear our stories as well. And we also talked about Leveraging
storytelling across all platforms. And, you know,
it's all about sharing the right story in the right way, wherever
your audience is. So if you missed any of those, go back and listen.
It's, you know, season 11. And, you know, each one of

(03:48):
these gives you tools to step into your story
with confidence. All right, so back to how to
build a community through stories. So here's the
thing. Community doesn't happen by
accident. It happens when you show up, when you share, and when you
invite others to do the same. I know we like to think that it's just

(04:09):
like. We just, like, draw people in, and everybody magically, you
know, comes to the same location. And that. That's not how it works. Right? We
get connected. We get connected. Whenever someone
shows up, they share, and we feel like we
can share as well, and this bond, this connection forms.
So if we know that, the question is, how do we do that? Well,

(04:32):
the first thing is to be brave enough to be seen. Vulnerability
is scary, but it is also the glue that holds communities
together. When you say, here's where I struggle,
here's kind of my messiness, here's the things that I fall on my
face on a regular basis, the things I have to relearn all the time,
it gives someone else the courage to say, me, too.

(04:56):
You know, I. I know one of the things for me is I
always say I'm a, you know, recovering people pleaser, and I accidentally fall into that
again. I'm also addicted to busyness, and I fall off
the wagon into that all the time. I
do great at boundaries sometimes, and I suck at them other times, and I
slip off that wagon. Right. I think we all have those

(05:19):
things, those. Those natural gutter balls, as I say, right?
Those natural things that even though we know better, we
sometimes slowly go back into those patterns again.
And, you know, that's something that, you know, being vulnerable about that
has allowed me to connect with other people, because those are common. And I
think when you talk about your struggles,

(05:41):
you allow somebody to go, oh, my gosh, me too. Because I think that is
the thing with entrepreneurship as a whole is sometimes I think that
people have this idea they have to have it all together. No,
you don't have to have it all together. You know, you have to have that
thing that you're offering together. But the rest of your life,
everybody struggles with something. I don't care who it is. You pick your favorite,

(06:03):
you know, idol, the person you look up to the most. They've got
messy middles, too. And I think that is the thing
that I would really suggest you do. If you're wanting to build a
community, you have to be brave enough to be seen.
All right, number two, celebrate the stories of
others. Building a community isn't about being the loudest voice

(06:26):
in the room. It's about amplifying others. Highlight someone
else's story in your newsletter or on social media. You know,
being able to allow other people that platform to share
is the greatest gift. And I think that, you know, being
able to allow them to share their story in their own authentic
way in a safe place is, again, a great

(06:48):
gift. And that leads me to number three, create safe
spaces. Whether it's a Facebook group or your
podcast, you want to create places where people feel safe to
share. That might mean setting boundaries or leading
with kindness and empathy, but when you
do these things, your community will grow.

(07:10):
Community grows when people feel seen, heard, and valued.
And you, you have the power to create that.
All right, so now it's your turn.
You've heard my story. You've been a part of this series, and I know
you have something powerful to share. So if you're sitting here thinking,
I've got a story that can help someone, I want to hear it.

(07:34):
Whether it's about your business journey, your wins, your
failures, your story matters. I would like you to
head on over to Successfully Chaotix Be a Guest page.
The link is in the show notes of the show you're
listening to right now. And let's chat. If you can't find it, just go
to
www.simplefullychaotic.com

(07:58):
b a guest, and you should be able to
come to the contact form to be able to fill that out. All right,
here's the truth. The world needs to hear more
real stories. Stories that inspire, stories that
connect, stories that remind us that we're not alone. And as
we wrap up this series, I want to leave you with this. I want

(08:19):
you to remember that your story has
power, whether it's messy, whether it's
chaotic, whether it's downright beautiful. Actually, it's all
beautiful, right? And it also has the ability
to connect and build something bigger than you. So I want
you to encourage you to keep sharing, keep showing up. And if you need a

(08:41):
reminder that it's okay to be human, warts and all,
this podcast is here for you. I'm here for you, scars, warts and
all. So thank you for being a part of this journey. Until next time, keep
embracing your chaos and sharing your story. Because it's through our
stories that we create something truly extraordinary.

(09:06):
Life is a winding road
no telling where it goes
Driving through days and nights
Won't stop for traffic lights
and I really want
to know really want.