When the STORY MOMENT arrives, will you be ready?

Think about all those times when you need to tell your company or brand story well.
It may be that you’re in HR fighting to attract, retain and get the most out of great people. Or you’re the one charged with closing the big deal. Or a techie trying to get the C-Suite to champion your cause of greater transparency and data protection. Or maybe you’re looking for investors, or carrying out mergers and acquisitions.
There will be moments when you have to tell the story. And tell it well. Tell it in a way that answers the pressing questions and invites new ones.
Who are you?
What do you do?
Why do you do it?
Why should others care?
The moment is here. Are you ready?
Think about it this way. Jump into a time warp that transports you from that awesome moment of opportunity and fly back through all of the things that have to happen for you to be truly prepared to knock it out of the park.
Let’s start at the beginning and end up back at that story moment.
Change is happening all around you. Your company is at a crossroads and you can’t afford to get stuck there for long. Market conditions have changed. You’re in a crowded ecosystem, disruption is happening every day, the consumer has new, ever-changing demands. Which means you’re at risk of becoming obsolete. Or you may be in a position to pull the market into the future.
You’re a leader and you know that you need to invest in getting this right. To create positive change, you need to capture the very essence of why you exist and how to make it relevant to everyone you need to get onboard. How do you do it?

Ten steps to getting it right:

1. Decide on and commit to a plan, including a rational budget.
2. Let go of the confines of the way you’ve been communicating your story in the past.
3. Get outside help so your internal stakeholders can fully participate.
4. Do a deep immersive experience to reveal truth.
5. Redefine and recommit to your purpose, vision + mission.
6. Craft you story and make it accessible, usable and malleable.
7. Make sure it’s simple, authentic, with unbridled passion (leave the sharp edges on).
8. Train your people how to use it effectively for their specific story moments
9. Rehearse and perfect the story for the people you need to get on board.
10. Work tirelessly to engage and inspire your community to take it, make it their own, and run with it.

It’s simple…and it’s really hard.

See the need.
Take action.
Get immersed.
Craft the story.
Train your team.
Own it.
Engage + inspire others.
Build community.
Evolve.

We’re back at your story moment. Whoever you are. Whoever you’re talking to. Don’t let the moment pass you by. When you do the work, you can be confident. So, take a deep breath. Be present and connected to the people you’re with. Tell your story… and then listen really well.