Thousands of people have watched the first two videos in my free video series on Storytelling for Speaking & Selling and video #3 is now up.
You can watch it by clicking here.
This series is for anyone who is involved in speaking, selling, leading or teaching. If you haven’t seen the first two videos – register at the link below.
The feedback on the first video in my free series on Storytelling for Speaking & Selling has been tremendous.
Video #2 is now available.
In the second video I will teach you the step by step blueprint on how to craft an influential story.
Have you ever wondered why some people’s stories are so relatable, engaging and compelling? After you watch this video – you won’t wonder anymore.
To register for all of the videos – go to www.influencethroughstories.com
If you are involved in speaking or selling then you know how important it is to engage your audience/prospect emotionally to get them to take action or respond to your message. In an effort to help you be more effective at this I am putting out a free video training series on how to tell stories that move people.
Some of the best stories you can share are the personal stories that teach a life lesson. Watch the video below for a quick story that teaches a powerful lesson – Pushing Through The Pain
I have a confession – when I was 12 years old, I wanted to be a magician.
A couple weeks ago, my five year old daughter found a box of old magic tricks and so I have been honing my skills as of late. 
My favorite magician of all time is Harry Houdini. Houdini was a master magician and was best known as an escape artist.
He said that he could escape from any jail cell in the world in less than an hour and he succeeded on several occasions. Then a small town in the British Isles built a new jail they were extremely proud of and issued the challenge to Houdini to see if he could escape from one of their cells. Houdini loved the publicity and the money and so he accepted.
By the time he arrived, excitement had grown throughout Great Britain. He rode into town and walked into the cell with the confidence and swagger that only Houdini had. When the door was closed he took off his coat and went to work. Hidden in his belt, he pulled out a flexible, yet tough and durable ten-inch piece of steel and began to work on the lock.
At the end of 30 minutes his confidence was fading. After an hour he was drenched in perspiration. After two hours, he literally collapsed against the door – and it opened.
You see it had never been locked, except in his own mind. The great escape artist could have pushed the door gently at any time and escaped without any effort, but he kept himself locked in the cell.
I love that story because it illustrates a very powerful point. Limitations are mental and self-imposed. George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars said, “We are all living in cages with the doors wide open.” It is up to us to break free, to believe, to grow, and to achieve.
I’m sure that many of you who speak, lead or teach don’t view yourself as being in sales. The truth is, however, we are all in sales. Whether its a product, a service, a vision, an idea, a strategy or ourselves that we are trying to promote, it is all sales. I think we would do better to embrace that principle and learn to sell effectively.
With that in mind – what are you selling?
Your answer may be a specific product or service, but what are you really selling? As an influencer you need to recognize what people are looking for, and start selling what they want. In other words, stop selling the features and start selling the benefits. What does your product or service provide that people will spend money to get?
Think of it this way.
You don’t buy a newspaper, you buy news.
You don’t buy life insurance, you buy security.
You don’t buy glasses, you buy vision.
You don’t buy awnings, you buy shade.
What drives people to buy is not the product or service, it’s what the product or service can do for them.
What does your product or service do? Does it prolong health, increase income, or accelerate productivity?
When you are selling, if you want to move from good results to great results, you need to know what you are really selling.
I have been overwhelmed lately by how many people I see that struggle because they don’t believe in themselves. There are many reasons for a lack of self belief – but I wanted to share this experience to get you thinking differently about yourself.
Not too long ago after a speech in the Midwest, a man asked me if we could speak privately. I noticed as we went over to a quiet corner that the man walked with a cane. He introduced himself as John, thanked me for my speech, and thanked me for taking a minute to talk with him. As John spoke it was apparent that he had some type of speech impediment because his speech was a little slurred. He told me that he had a hard time working with other people because of the way that they perceived him. I asked how he thought that other’s perceived him, and with hesitation he replied “Well, with my condition…” I asked what his condition was and he explained that he had a mild form of Cerebral Palsy. It affected the lower half of his body and that is why he walked with a cane. It is also why his speech was a little slurred. He said that these were the only symptoms and that his mind worked great and was not effected by the disease. I then asked John “How do you see yourself?” He paused, and then with tears in his eyes said, “I don’t know.” We had a long talk in the corner of that room, I explained to John the importance of believing in yourself, but his quick reply was “How can I believe in myself with this condition?” Then I had a chance to explain to him what the word belief really meant. Belief doesn’t have to be this perfect knowledge or a surety of something. The word belief actually means to be in love with. I told him frankly your problem is not your condition; your problem is that because of your condition you don’t love yourself. That was hard to hear I’m sure, but it rang true. We talked about how he could change the way he viewed himself and the way he felt about himself, and after we both shed some tears, I gave him a hug and thanked him for his time. John and I still correspond and I am happy to say that he is growing in his love (belief) for himself.
Atherosclerosis is the progressive build up of plaque, fatty deposits, and other cells in the walls of your arteries causing them to harden. This horrible disease is the leading cause of coronary heart disease and stroke, which were responsible for 602,000 deaths in 2004 — more than 25% of all deaths in the United States. Each year about 1.2 million Americans are diagnosed with coronary heart disease and about 700,000 people suffer a stroke.
As staggering as these statistics are, I believe that an even greater percentage of people around the world suffer from a cousin disease called Psychosclerosis.
Psychosclerosis is the hardening of the attitude, which causes a person to cease dreaming, seeing, thinking, and leading. It is the hardening of the mind so that we become unteachable: we stop learning and we stop growing. It is the hardening of the heart, which takes away our ability to feel, love and believe. While this disease does not physically take lives, it robs millions of people of the quality of life and success they deserve.
To combat this disease, successful people stay humble, are constantly learning and growing, and reaching for new goals. The purpose of this life is growth, becoming the person you are capable of becoming.
Don’t let psychosclerosis ruin your life.
